Evanescent
by Agent Glitch
Summary: Our favorite little protégé Glitch got hit by a car! Somehow, his soul escaped his unconscious body, and now he's a ghost. You'd think that's a bad thing, but no! That cheeky little troublemaking prodigy just takes his advantage and prepares to have a little fun. However, fun can have a few consequences... Bodie/Emilia, Dare/MacCoy, future Rasa/Lima to you curious peeps!
1. Prologue: Emptiness

**"**_I survived a dreadful accident_

_In the car crash of the century_**"**

**~ Hospital Flowers **_- Owl City_

Glitch winced. Angel's last move had somehow produced a painful cracking – or snapping, which was a more fitting word – noise. Oddly, the dancer didn't seem bothered by the unexpected sound. "That's some real pain tolerance," muttered Mo into Glitch's ear. The protégé nodded absently. "Yeah..." he murmured without bothering to look his brother directly in the face.

They were at a dance party at the DCI Headquarters. Most of the dancers were there, but Glitch didn't know if anyone wasn't present, as Glitch never counted them. He had showed up in his agent suit, of course, and he self-consciously rubbed a trace of dust off of one of his shoes. The brownish trail disappeared, leaving his shoe a clean purple.

The Lu$h dancers backed off, and the next crew, the Riptide duo Bodie and Emilia, took up the dance floor. Glitch knew that they were quite the elite, and now they were dancing to one of their signature songs, so the Asian prodigy stepped back and waited for his turn. When it came at last – surprisingly, Glitch had waited for half an hour – he heaved himself off his seat and took his place next to Mo. Glitch's suspenders shook as he moved forward. He smoothed his hair.

Their song was titled Run and was one of Glitch's favorites. He pushed through easily. Hi-Def would not lose to the other crews this night. Panting, Glitch wiped a bit of sweat from his forehead. He smiled. He was the other half of Hi-Def, and he would be one great dancer if he kept living like this.

Boomy the boombox played another song this time. Glitch recognized the R&B intro immediately, and he clapped to the beat as a start to the dance. He was feeling positive about this song. After all, it was a Hi-Def song, and Glitch had danced to this one plenty of times. The lyrics soon played. Glitch recited them in his head. _Yeah, yeah, yeah. _The song itself was Yeah! by Usher.

Glitch managed to catch himself in the middle of the Warbear move – particularly hard, but adds a good touch to the dance – and did it correctly. _Phew, _he thought. He did the other dance moves: Longboard Breaker, Soul Slide, and Push Back.

Both long overdue and far too early, the dance was over and Glitch froze in his finishing move. He topped the dance with a few extra moves before turning to the boombox Boomy. Hi-Def was apparently the last crew dancing there. DCI had been the first, much to every dancers' displeasure, followed by D-Coy and Flash4ward, and then a couple other crews. The Glitterati hadn't been present, to the relief of many dancers. Snobby Jaryn and Kerith weren't exactly wanted anyway.

A moment or two after the dance, praise was given from dancer to dancer, friendly critics and gentle rebukes. Glitch saw some of the taller male dancers with each other. Someone said "Good job back there," and another said "You were pretty good," and even Lil'T commented on one of Glitch's moves. He returned it with a grudging admit of "You weren't so bad yourself," before running back to Mo. Glitch never really liked the girl, and they usually acted more rival than friend to each other. After all, each crew should be independently competitive. Glitch liked to think of all this as a game. He enjoyed dancing, but there was more to life then carrying out Rasa's work. Nowadays, Glitch rarely danced for himself. Most of his commitment went to Hi-Def.

After all the drama was over and everyone was heading home, Glitch's eyes were getting bleary. It was late and he was beginning to see things less clearly. Lights were obscure balls of bright colors and walking people were fuzzy smudges of black. Mo had to guide him through the roads back to their apartment. But Glitch didn't know what was going to happen next. Neither did Mo. And yet, tragedy decided that it would come late that night and the two Hi-Def B-Boys reached home safely.

With Mo resting in his room and Glitch taking a quick sleep on the house couch, the atmosphere became quiet and eerily silent. Glitch slept quite long, and when he woke his vision was better and the dark living room became easier to navigate in. He switched on a light and changed into a jacket and jeans. He took off his suspenders and hooked up his mp3 player.

Being a dancer wasn't all Glitch was. Sometimes at night he would walk around the streets, doing who knows what. Sometimes he would stop by at a store and buy something, or pay a visit to certain places that were if interest to him. This night was one of those nights. Glitch would ponder the day outdoors.

Plugging in his headphones, Glitch stepped down the stairs to the streets. The lights didn't help his much to see, which was an odd reason for him to like the place. That was when he remembered that Mo had asked him to buy a new pack of batteries. Memorizing dance moves in his head again, he crept round the roads until he found a suitable store. He paid for the batteries and made his way back home. Soon enough, he reached the turn in the street that took him to only three houses away from Mo's apartment. At least, with the batteries, he would be more prepared if he needed a flashlight or a remote.

However, he was not prepared for facing a burglar armed with a car that was speeding towards him with police cars pretty far behind. Glitch had his headphones on and was unaware of the noise. Suddenly the car exploded from within roadside bushes and crashed into him. The last sight in front of Glitch's eyes were of himself falling downwards. Then his sight blurred once more and Glitch dropped into darkness.

**"**_My shattered hopes_

_Collapsed on cold cement_**"**

**~ Hospital Flowers **_- Owl City_


	2. Chapter 1: A Glitch

"Glitch? Glitch! Wake up!" hollered a panicked Mo. He would have shaken the protégé's shoulders in an attempt to wake him up, but Angel and Bodie held him back. The kid's face was half-hidden by a breathing mask and tube, and he was being loaded into an ambulance. He was in very bad shape, with one leg twisted in an awkward position and a nasty wound on his head. His clothes were caked in drying blood. Mo struggled, desperate only to check on his brother. Bodie tried to soothe him with, "It's okay. They got him. He's in good hands."

The teenage prodigy was lifted and soon, he was in the back of the ambulance. The blaring sirens sounded faint and distant in Mo's ears. All he cared about was his brother, the other half of Hi-Def. Reluctantly, Mo was let into the van, and he sat close to the protégé, continuously stroking his black hair, which was beginning to lose its stiffness and fell over his head and closed eyes. Mo was careful to avoid the wound. The older Hi-Def dancer longed for his prodigy's eyelids to snap open and blink, and for the light of recognition to shine in the emerald orbs. But they didn't. They were closed, not even twitching, and the only moves he made were the gentle, slow rose and fall of his chest as he breathed. Mo began to whisper calming words, but, whether to Glitch or himself, he did not know. The ambulance rolled off into the night, with the unconscious protégé fighting for his own health.

As he watched the protégé, Mo began to calm down, but his heart still raced. He blamed himself for this accident. This was his fault, not Glitch's. The burglar and the runaway car had nothing to do with it. Mo didn't even care if the burglar was caught. All he wanted was his protégé back. The other people in the ambulance tried to talk to Mo, to get him to talk, so he told them all he knew in a shaking voice. When they dismissed him and Glitch was rushed to a room, Mo was told to wait.

His fingers weak, Mo sat alone, the waiting room lit up brightly, but all Mo could see was darkness threatening to engulf his protégé. _Why?_

Suddenly, his phone rang, jolting him awake. He fumbled to get it out of his pocket. "Hello?" he greeted, his voice hoarse.

"..._amigo, _it's Angel. How is the _chico?_"

"I can't say. I'm in the waiting room. Th... they won't let me in."

Voice honeyed with sympathy, Angel replied, "He'll be okay. Don't give up hope, _amigo, _you'll see."

"Thanks, Angel. I'll call you as soon as I find out about him." He hung up.

Within a time that felt like forever, Mo waited. He waited while twiddling his thumbs, dreading the worst. He didn't want to lose his brother; he realized how much he meant to him. Not only as a dance partner, but as family. Mo had never had a brother like Glitch. Even if Glitch had always annoyed Mo twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, four weeks a month, more than Mo could ever remember.

Footsteps echoed through the silent waiting room, and Mo was called in to see Glitch. With anticipation rising in his chest, Mo ran. He opened the door gently, expecting Glitch to jump out with excitement and complain about his hair. But what he saw was different.

Glitch lay almost motionless on the bed. His head had a bandage wrapped around it, and his leg was in a cast. His eyes were still closed. Strange wires were attached to him. In Mo's eyes, they alienated him, making him look very odd indeed. This wasn't the real Glitch. Hurt, Mo hesitantly moved closer and touched his pale right arm, which had scratches. Glitch didn't move.

"We're afraid he's in a coma," said a voice behind him. Mo jumped. A nurse was in a lab coat, holding a clipboard in her hand, and she wore gloves. She was trying hard to calm Mo down. "He might not wake for months," she reported, but Mo detected regret. He tried not to worry. But, looking at this wounded, unconscious, pained dancer, Mo couldn't bear to stand by and do nothing. "Is... is there a chance of him..." _dying? _Mo couldn't force the word out.

The nurse said carefully, "We can never be sure. But he is strong, and I'm sure he'll wake up some day."

Mo thanked the nurse, and she let him have some time alone with Glitch. Mo decided to inform Angel about this. He called the Lu$h dancer, and his call was picked up in less than ten seconds. "Hey, Angel. It's Mo. Yeah, it's about Glitch. He... He's in a coma. I think he's in really bad shape. No... check on him? You mean _everyone? _Even Rasa? Lu$h, Riptide, Flash4ward, DCI? Serious? Okay... later today?"

Angel had offered for him, Aubrey, Bodie, Emilia, Taye, Lil' T, Rasa, and Lima to come see the ailing protégé. They had been waiting for Mo to call Angel. _Amazing how fast word can go around, even at 2 in the morning, _Mo thought. He realized that Bodie was right; Glitch _was _in safe hands, so he decided to return to his apartment alone.

At his apartment, Mo felt the emptiness sweep over him. He went inside Glitch's room. There was no way Glitch was going to die, was there? Mo clung to his shallow belief that, one day, he and his partner would be back to take over the dance floor. Maybe they'd even take a shot through the time machine again, or dominate the subways. Making sure he still had hope in him, Mo went in for a long nap.

After he woke up, Mo got back to the hospital, where Angel said they would meet. He found everyone waiting tensely outside. There was Aubrey, who looked worried even though she tried to hide it. There was Bodie and Emilia, who had been good friends with Glitch. There was Flash4ward, both looking concerned, and lastly, DCI. Rasa had his arms crossed. Mo knew he couldn't blame him; Glitch had always pranked everyone in Dance Central and got away with it, causing a lot of trouble for the DCI. He had even hacked into their system and caused certain errors, establishing that it was the Glitch who did it. Once or twice, he also messed up with the time machine in order to avoid time travel.

They all followed Mo into Glitch's room. He was still frozen in the same position as he was in last night, and his breathing was so soft Mo doubted that he would keep it up for long. Everyone looked concerned at this; other than his head and leg, cuts crisscrossed his arms.

"He'll be okay, won't he?" asked an anxious Lil'T. That was almost enough to make Mo smile. "Hopefully," he said, and he stuck to those words. He missed the little prankster.


	3. Chapter 2: Ghostly Goings-on

At first, he had panicked.

Glitch groaned and rolled his eyes. It was bad enough that he got hit by a car; now he was a ghost! What could he do to make everyone believe that he's just fine? Mo had already gone over his pain, and so had everyone else, even if they became less focused on dancing. It made Glitch even more furious. When he was just fine, they didn't care about him, and look at what happened once he got hurt!

Unhappily, Glitch thought about when he woke up again.

_He woke up. Alone. On a dark street with car tracks everywhere. The moon glowed overhead, and Glitch felt dizzy. He rubbed his head, trying to expel the pain. "Ow..." he mumbled, unaware of the changes that had just occurred._

_Disbelief ran through him when he looked at his hand. He could see his leather jacket sleeve, and his right hand, but it was _transparent. _Or translucent, to be precise. Glitch touched his hand. He poked himself again and again. He could still feel himself. "So why...?"_

_He stood up shakily, and when he gazed at himself up and down again he could see things that should have been blocked by his body. "What in the world...?"_

_When he walked, he felt... strange. He tried to jump, trying to make sure he was all right. Somehow, his body suspended itself in the air. "Heck?" He tried to float back down. Somehow, he could fly. And if that wasn't weird enough, he could go through things according to his own choice. He could lean on a tree and have one hand coming out of the trunk if he wanted to._

_Another thing he realized was that, however fast he flew or however far he ran, he couldn't get tired. That was when he bumped into Angel. He was coming straight back from Glitch's home. "Poor _chico,_" he muttered to himself. Glitch knew that it was him that Angel was referring to. "That car must have hit him hard, _si, si._" Glitch became confused. _Car? What car? _he thought. He ran up to the Lu$h dancer. "Hey, um, Angel? I'm right here."_

_Angel didn't reply._

_Glitch waved his hands in front of the dancer. "Angel? Angel!" he hollered, yelling only inches away. The older dancer was still oblivious to his presence. _

Bleakly, Glitch did a facepalm. He had gone crazy after that, but for some reason he was perfectly okay with his current situation by now. Even Mo had become happier after news came by that the 'annoying, frustrating prankster' would recover.

He was floating above the DCI Headquarters. There were dancers going down to a fierce dance off. At the moment, Riptide and Lu$h were battling. Glitch groaned, complaining as loud as possible, though he knew no one could hear him. "Aw, man, how is this supposed to be fair?"

Bodie, head-on in battle, was locked in position next to Angel. Both were trying to take the other down. Aubrey and Emilia were both resting, waiting for their turn.

Glitch was so bored that he decided to spice things up Glitch-style. He floated into one of the control rooms, intending to hook up a hologram to freak everyone out. He would use a hologram of Dr. Tan, he decided, and maybe his robots, too. Maybe even Keith and Jaryn... And he'd also add a mind-controlled Glitch! Yes, that's it. Luckily, the technology here was so sophisticated that Glitch could easily use it.

But as he typed in the inputs – with a very futuristic computer device indeed – that he needed, he heard footsteps approach. It was Rasa. _That boring bossy-pants, _Glitch thought ungraciously. He decided to stop typing and wait until Rasa came out. The ghost-prodigy lay casually against the high-backed chair that he was sitting in. He rolled his eyes.

"_Glitch? What _are _you _doing _here?" _asked an incredulous voice. At that, Glitch whipped around. Rasa had _seen _him. He had no idea how or why, but it was true. Rasa saw him, and that was that.

Rasa was standing there with his hands on his sides, and his mouth was gaping open. "I thought you were–" Rasa never got to finish his sentence. Glitch scooted. He ran behind the chair again, and plunged through the underground once he knew he was our of sight. He made a breakthrough, and he directed himself upwards, stopping when he reached ground level.

He was safe now, so he floated back down to the Headquarters, careful to make sure that Rasa didn't see him coming. He risked himself by peeking at Rasa, who was frantically deleting Glitch's prank-to-be. Fortunately for Glitch, he had only managed to make little process, so it was hard to tell that it was a prank that was intended.

Glitch carefully followed Rasa back to the dance floor. The DCI leader looked worried, and with good reason too. They made it to the floor, where Emilia and Aubrey were preparing to battle each other. A lot of dancers were there: Mo, in his DCI Agent outfit with the gray-and-silver hoodie and purple tie; Lima, styling her hair into a neat bun; Taye and Lil'T, talking to each other; even Kichi and Shinju. The Blue Ninja was admiring her hand blades while Shinju was sitting next to her, performing a ninja maneuver. Oblio was there too.

Rasa freaked out. "Did... did anyone see Glitch any time before this?" he stammered.

"Glitch? He's at the hospital, knucklehead," pointed out Mo, obviously thinking that Rasa had gone haywire.

"No, no! I just saw him in the control room..." Rasa insisted. Even Aubrey and Emilia had stopped dancing, and everyone turned their attention to the once-reliable DCI leader.

"Why would he be at the control room? He's got a sprained leg, for goodness' sake!" Bodie joined in.

People started to continue the argument.

"He's wounded! How could he have made it here?"

"His room's on the third floor of a hospital mile away. Did he fly out or something?"

"Rasa, are you feeling okay?"

"How could an unconscious prankster get in here?"

Rasa shot a look at Mo. "Maybe someone's decided to take the role of a prankster and made a Glitch hologram just to pick on me?!"

Mo glared back. "As if!"

Meanwhile, floating about just behind Rasa, a seemingly innocent Glitch was enjoying the show.

**Guest: Aw, thanks for the review!**

**I won't be posting no the next chapter until I get a certain number of reviews for other people... 'cause I'm bad like that! No, really. Don't 'cha wanna know what the Glitch gon' do next?**


	4. Chapter 3: You Can't Have Too Much Fun!

Rasa was stuck in the control room.

Glitch was flying leisurely above in a lying position, as if he was sleeping on a couch. He was careful to avoid getting seen again. But the DCI leader was still freaking out. From the words he had let out, Glitch learned that, as a ghost, he was still translucent in Rasa's eyes, but Rasa had only caught a glimpse of him, so the older dancer was still unsure of what he had seen.

While Glitch floated overhead, the DCI battle went on. Both Mo and Oblio teamed up rather grudgingly, because Dr. Tan and Glitch couldn't make it. At least Glitch could enjoy watching, but now he just wanted to dance. It wasn't fair that everyone else couldn't see him. Why did it have to be Mr. Bossy-Chicken-In-A-Suit that could see him? Why couldn't it be Mo? That way, at least, thing could be better, and Glitch could reveal himself as a ghost to Mo. It was a completely different story when Rasa was involved.

Secretly, everyone else who was associated with the DCI had a bone to pick with Rasa, except for Lima, of course. Lil'T even made a secret forum on a password-locked Internet site and had everyone make an account just to complain about Rasa. She had used a photo editor and made an image of a cat doing puppy eyes saying 'What did we do to deserve this?' which referred to Rasa rarely letting them have a day off. Of course, everyone knew it was an exaggeration, and yet they still laughed.

Now Glitch wished he could complain out loud about it. He was so _bored. _He wished that Rasa would get out of the control room so Glitch could continue with his hologram prank. Maybe he could just do something easier... After all, he was a ghost now. _Yeah... that's it! _Glitch got to work, shooting out of the Headquarters like a cannon and finding a huge amount of paint spray cans. After all, he and Mo had painted the walls at Toprock Avenue when they time traveled. A little touch of color couldn't hurt. He swooped back to the DCI so fast that no one would notice the cans flying on their own. He flew so high that he promised to savor the feeling well. He didn't know how long he would be a ghost. This was the best feeling ever, and Glitch would not lose it too soon, even if he wanted to get his normal life back.

He landed, and decided to make this work out even better. He'd show himself to Rasa! And, in this, everyone's a victim, even Mo. Why? Because Glitch knows he'll be the master prankster, even if he's a ghost! He twisted the cans, getting ready. He hid in a corner of the main dance floor, and waited for his first prey to show up. Rasa, of course. Glitch got up. "Surprised?" he taunted, holding up his spray can. Rasa began to freak out again. "G – Glitch! What are you doing? Why are you..."

Making trouble was much more fun that going for a boring conversation with Rasa, Glitch knew, so he just flew straight ahead and began to go berserk. He took all his spray cans and tucked them under his left arm and had a blue can in his right hand. He didn't care if everyone became scared of him. All he wanted was to raise the craziness bar, and turn the insanity up to an eleven.

Battles stopped as Glitch began painting. He was going random, and everyone began to scream. Oblio was more sensible and darted behind a wall and out of Glitch's reach... for now. Glitch wouldn't leave anyone behind. At least Oblio was smarter than everyone else, who still exposed themselves our on the dance floor. Even the backup dancers were there, just staring like fools.

Kichi and Shinju did ninja moves and hid. The Blue Ninja was in a defensive position, her partner getting ready if there was a need to strike.

Mo ducked, Angel following suit soon after. An unfortunate Aubrey just decided to yell pointlessly, making her an easy target for Glitch. He chose yellow and sprayed her red hair, then he continued with the walls. Aubrey fainted dramatically, giving Angel no choice but to catch her, and Glitch sprayed the Latino with bright green. Angel began to curse in Spanish.

Dare clapped, enjoying whatever special effects were happening, but Glitch didn't spare her and chose red for her, staining her clothes and hair. She began to angrily complain with her probably fake British accent. The DJ, MacCoy, got pink, and Mo received a dark blue line from head to toe. Lima tried to get everyone to calm down, but yelled as Glitch sprayed her all around with white. Deciding that there was too little going on, Glitch dropped the cans and went to the boombox Boomy, choosing Usher's song, Scream. Then he flew back to the spray cans. He chose orange and sprayed a squealing Lil'T with bright orange, and picked an unremarkable shade of brown for Taye. Then he got back to Rasa and used silver on him. He even took some black paint on his finger and made a fake moustache on Rasa's face. Darting about, wondering about who he missed, he realized that he had left the ninjas unstained.

Soon Oblio had purple hair, Kichi had black lines on her, and Shinju had teal. After a bit of work, Bodie had a rosy tint on his suit and Emilia had cream. The Glitterati weren't present, which made Glitch groan. He had wanted to see a rainbow-haired Jaryn. "Oh well," he said, "not everyone can get colored hair just yet."

Once everyone there, including the backup dancers, were sprayed with paint, Glitch exited with an eccentric mix of breakdancing, shoving his talent into Rasa's face. "Who says I'm not good enough?" Glitch laughed, leaving Rasa to clean up this mess.

Riptide, Flash4ward, DCI, Lu$h, Ninja, and D-Coy, plus a Hi-Def member and a former Murder Of Crows dancer, and all of them were grumbling. Glitch flew off, ready to set up his second prank. One question, though.

What would his second prank be?

**That's your question, and I'd like you to answer it. I'd like to make this a little different and make Glitch show Rasa the fun side of life, but I want Glitch to cause more trouble before I focus on that plot.**


	5. Chapter 4: There's A Ghost In Here

**Thanks for the reviews! Sorry for the late update and short-ish chapter, school's getting to me :(**

Everyone was confused.

Rasa was desperately trying to erase the painted moustache off of his face. He kept grunting angrily. Lima was trying to get the white paint off of her arm. Aubrey was complaining about the fact that her hair looked like it had mustard on it. Angel was having difficulty cleaning the green off of his clothes, and Mo was rubbing the blue off of his hoodie without having success. Dare had run off to a bathroom to clean her hair, MacCoy following suit. He probably got the most shame, as he had been sprayed with pink. Taye and her sister were too bewildered too move, and Oblio was looking at his own hair in displeasure. Kichi was distasteful, with black lines on her, and Shinju didn't appreciate the teal paint on him either. Bodie and Emilia weren't pleased either, with Bodie in a rosy-colored suit and Emilia with cream.

Well, everyone but Glitch was confused. The ghost just hovered above all the other agents. "So... not so dignified now, eh, Rasa?" he shot at the DCI leader. He laughed until his stomach hurt.

Rasa glared at the protégé. "Glitch, you trickster!" he hollered. Mo looked at the not-so-tidy man and asked, "_Glitch? _Rasa, have you gone nuts?"

"But... but he was the one painting! Didn't you see him... flying?" Rasa stammered fearfully. Glitch knew that he couldn't understand why no one else could see the prodigy. And he could have sworn that the little cheek had flown! Of course, all that was true.

All the more reason to make Rasa look like a fool. Glitch smirked, taunting Rasa with all the insults he could think of. Rasa tried not to look at the floating ghost, but Glitch kept wavering into view. "Like that?" he laughed.

Rasa grunted. "But..." Glitch took this chance and quickly dove into cover. Sneaky as he was, his speed and efficiency as a ghost helped him go around quickly. He decided not to go too far just yet. Pranking was progressive, so he would save his best pranks for last.

So he just decided to make things float about on their own. Simple as peach pie.

Glitch grabbed an empty spray can and tucked it under one arm and took two more, juggling them around without a care. He traipsed into the main room of the Headquarters, close to the time machine, which was being programmed to send a dancer to some other era. Lil'T was the first one to scream, raising the alarm to everyone else, including Rasa. Glitch did a backflip without using his ghost power, then kicked the cans about as if he were playing soccer. Then Glitch took one can and gripped it so hard that the metal dented, shocking everyone, including himself. _I need to be more careful, _he realized. His strength was unpredictable.

As a ghost, Glitch could fly, become insubstantial, could never grow tired, was incapable of fatigue, incredibly fast, and apparently strong.

Knowing what would scare the stuffing out of everyone, Glitch grabbed what he could, a sharp object that he didn't bother identifying, and one flattened can. He used all his strength to cut the metal. Just because he never ran out of energy didn't mean he didn't have to struggle to do a difficult physical task. It would seem as if the metal was being eaten away, carved into a message: _Get Out. _Glitch in particular never really thought about ghost movies, but he knew that this was a common message.

Rasa leaped for Glitch, trying to stop the protégé, but the ghost just stood there and made sure he was insubstantial, so that when Rasa grabbed him, his hands gripped thin air. Glitch felt nothing.

He flew to another side of the room, some of him flying through Angel in the process, leaving the can behind on the floor. The Latino shivered. Did he feel something? "A... Angel..." Rasa said, trembling. He must have seen Glitch go through.

Lil'T picked the scratched can up in two shaking fingers. "Get... out..." she stammered shakily, reading the jagged words carved forcefully into the metal. Her eyes stretched impossibly wide.

Even the easygoing Bodie looked intimidated. "Let me see..." he murmured in deliberate slowness. Lil'T tossed him the can as if it were something dirty and dusty, and Bodie caught it with a flourish.

He examined the flattened can with an expert eye. "I don't see any fingerprints," he said, lifting the can up. "None but mine, and T only held the edges. The rest is untouched." The discovery surprised Glitch. He had held the can, but no prints were made. Odd. At least this way it would be harder to define who had been responsible for everything.

"You don't need to tell us! We saw it fly, for goodness' sake!" yelled Aubrey. Her face was paled.

Bodie continued to observe. "These paint marks... they don't seem to make any sense. No words, no letters, just plain lines." To Glitch, it was as if Bodie was some sort of exorcist.

Rasa didn't speak up. Visibly, everyone would think of him as stupid if he brought up the Glitch suspicion again. Mo's expression was hidden in his hoodie, and Oblio closed his eyes, making impossible to guess what he was doing. Glitch decided that it was one of his meditating things, as one of his phrases, Mo had told him, was 'Mental preparation is key.' Bodie carefully touched a red streak that stretched from one side of a wall to another.

The center of the room was empty now, as everyone was slowly backing up. Glitch took another can and threw it, just inches above hitting Lima's head. Then he hurled one, missing Emilia's shoulder by a half-foot, and one almost hitting Bodie. The lifeguard-dancer grabbed the can and threw it at Glitch, going for the ghost-prodigy with deadly precision, even though Bodie couldn't see the hovering protégé.

The blond, with his shades taken off ever since the paint incident, yelled fearfully, "Who are you? What do you want with us?!" Glitch had no thought of his substantive being at the moment, but the can still flew through him. Unfortunately, Glitch still had reflexes and a normal human's instinct, causing him to leap backwards hastily.

And at that moment, he was thrown into the open time machine, and he disappeared into the seemingly endless void.

**Up for more? Review to save Glitch from the timestream!**


	6. Chapter 5: Shot Through Time

**So here is the fifth chapter. I totally suck at humor, so I guess I'd concentrate more on the plot for now. Sorry if I focused too much on detail.**

Glitch shut his eyes. Tightly. He didn't like the time machine at _all, _and every time he went through it he would feel like his stomach was tying itself up in knots until he felt like he needed to throw up. He just closed his eyes, not bothering about the fact that he could remain stuck there forever.

The pain didn't come. Glitch kept waiting for it, but when he opened his eyes he felt okay. Around him were the swirling purple-blue shades of the timestream. Glitch knew he had to keep moving unless he wanted to be stuck here for good. And, now that pain was no longer an obstacle, Glitch decided that being stuck in the timestream wouldn't get him anywhere.

He made sure he was solid, and as the music wound itself around him Glitch found himself dancing to the beat flawlessly. The warp he was caught in wavered, dimmed and lightened. The colors became even more diverse, from dark purple to light blue, then it turned into flashing aquamarine turquoise, white, black, and Glitch shut his eyes, but he still danced. He didn't feel the usual twist in his belly, for which he was grateful for. Slowly, ever so slowly, he opened his eyes again.

Then the knot of colors twisted violently, and Glitch felt like he was being catapulted into the open sky. Glitch switched into insubstantial mode, and he found himself on a dirty pavement. He was curled up into a ball, his arms wrapped around his bent knees and his back to a wall, but suddenly his back plunged through the bricks. Glitch caught himself in time, and he lay on the hard rock.

The ghost recognized this place as Toprock Avenue, in the 80s. At least he knew how to get around, as he had spent a long time there with Mo. But what could he do to return to the present? No one would notice him, so how could he get back? Worse, he couldn't contact the DCI in any way. He and Mo did have a boombox, Boomy, but what good would that do? It was back at DCI. Even if he had Boomy with him, he was unsure of how the boombox could help. Could anyone hear him? Probably not, except maybe Rasa. So technically, he couldn't do a thing unless Mo was sent back to this era, so Glitch could go back home with him.

What's worse, he left the Dance Central dancers terrified! Not only did he horrify them with flying spray cans, he made it look like they were still being haunted! There was little chance of them going back just to send the dancers back to certain eras, as things weren't very intense when it came to dance crimes, ever since Dr. Tan was taken down. The Dance Central could have simply abandoned the place, especially after they read the message Glitch carved into the can.

So was he stuck here? Glitch had little idea on how the time machine worked, but he knew that he wasn't truly in the past. Even so, he didn't know how to get back. He did not know about his limits, nor how far he could go with his abilities.

Glitch hovered over the alleyways. He flew close to the place where he and Mo usually danced. The street was no longer used for dancing as Hi-Def weren't present, and at the moment it was completely empty. Glitch made himself substantial again, and leaned on a wall, arms crossed. He tugged on his leather sleeve absentmindedly, not knowing how he would get back.

Glitch yelled into the open sky, pouring in all his anger. He longed for his limbs to tire and for his throat to dry, but they didn't, and each scream he let out was only stronger than the last. He could have shouted all his anger at the skies forever if that was what he wanted. And people just walked past him, which made Glitch even more furious. He felt like punching someone in the face.

He had nothing to do. Nothing until he could save himself from this place, or timeline, more likely. What was he supposed to do? It felt like forever was a road, and Glitch's bike just broke a chain.

The night sky began to lighten. Morning dawned on him, and Glitch groaned. He rubbed his eyes, even though he was sure that he had not been sleeping. _Does a ghost even need to sleep? _he wondered out loud.

He floated upwards, then stopped. He was about ten feet above the roads. Underneath him, a gentle breeze lifted a faint cloud of dust into the air. Glitch circled the area, trying to get used to his current situation. He kept darting back and forth, wishing he could do something useful for once. At least dancing would do him good, but without music, there was no dancing.

Glitch ascended to a height of approximately twenty feet. Nothing in particular caught his eye. He flew higher and higher, trying to calm himself down and enjoy the cool air rushing through him, and he inhaled deeply. Then yet another thought crossed his mind: _Do ghosts need to breathe? _Shaking his head at his own quizzical behaviour, Glitch decided that he wouldn't think about it just yet.

Then he rubbed the back of his neck. He kicked the thin air around him, bored. He landed roughly on the curb, but recovered quickly due to his strange ghost immunity. He fiddled with his shoes, toying with the reddish straps, ran his hands through his hair, and everything he could do to distract himself.

In less than a week, he had gone from the usual heartthrob dancer to a physically-wounded, mentally-stressed... ghost-protégé? It just seemed so strange and far-fetched, not to mention random. If he had known about this and blurted it all out to Mo a week before it happened, he was sure that his mentor would have called a therapist, thinking that the prodigy had gone mad.

Again Glitch rose high above a building that was old and dirty. He hovered like a helicopter, then sighed exaggeratedly before he noticed a movement not too far away, but it was so slight that, again, Glitch wondered about his abilities. Were his senses sharpened? He shook his head angrily, temporarily dismissing the tendril of thought.

Glitch dove down to explore. He didn't know why; of course a lot had gone on since he had arrived here, so why did he choose to explore only now? Still, he had something that made him think that this was important. He'd call it a hunch.

Arriving at the place wasn't much of an obstacle for Glitch, but what he saw next surprised him, almost enough to make him freeze. He saw two familiar faces, figures that stood out from all the other people Glitch had seen. Instinct took over again, and Glitch hid himself. The two people began to talk.

"Are you sure?" asked a hesitant voice. Glitch recognized the speaker.

"We've gone through this. I'm sure," insisted a pressured, tired yet certain voice.

Those two were the DCI, Rasa and Lima.

**Did Rasa convince Lima about Glitch? Why did they get to the 80s? Will Glitch somehow reveal himself to Lima? Does this link to Glitch returning to normal? Or not? Will I get a good grade in tomorrow's test?**

**... review?**


	7. Chapter 6: Return Home

Glitch was almost certain that, if he hadn't his ghost immunity, he would have died on the spot out of either shock or a heart attack. As it was, he felt like he couldn't move, with his hands clenched into fists on his sides, his feet set apart, planted to the ground. Not sure whether or not he was breathing, he forced himself to back away into hiding. His translucent figure retreated until he could only see Rasa from behind a wall. The ghost-prodigy gripped the edge of the wall with tight fingers. Luckily, Rasa had his back to Glitch, and Lima, who was facing him, couldn't seem to detect the ghost's presence.

Slowly, Glitch peered at the two dancers, his feet on tiptoe even though he could have floated inches above the ground if he wanted to. The two DCI members were talking again. Glitch noticed that they were now newly dressed and that not a trace of paint was on them. Well, at least that was what he could see from his point of view.

"Look, Rasa," Lima said, "I know you're feeling like someone's gone through here, but every dancer is back at Headquarters. Nobody could have taken the time machine."

Rasa's face looked exasperated. "Glitch could have, and he did," he replied decisively.

"Glitch isn't here." Lima put a hand on Rasa's shoulder. "Are you feeling all right?"

"I'm fine! And he is. He was with us the entire time. Ever since the paint thing occurred." Rasa brushed Lima's hand off of his shoulder. "But he's different."

"Rasa..." Lima stepped back. At her feet was Boomy. "We have more to attend to. We don't have time for this." Her face showed worry. Then, without waiting for an answer, she bent down and flipped on a song with Boomy, so soft that it could be heard only from within a ten-foot radius. Not to attract unwanted attention, Glitch knew.

"I'm not going," Rasa spoke.

Lima stared at him. "What?"

"I'm not going," repeated Rasa.

Lima grabbed Rasa's arm. "You're coming, Mister, like it or not." Then she pulled him over. Rasa didn't budge.

Glitch felt torn. Was this his cue? His heart sank. Reluctantly, he stepped forward. Rasa spotted him immediately. "Glitch?"

Through one way or another, Glitch smiled. "Fuses burnt, but the system's still going," he said while grinning widely. Lima looked around, but both Glitch and Rasa could see that she saw nothing.

Lima stared at Rasa as if he had grown wings and a tail. "Look, you're doing that again. Glitch isn't there."

"Heck _yeah _I am!" protested Glitch. "And I'll prove it!"

Rasa smirked at the smoldering protégé. "Don't," he warned, making Lima even more confused. "Who in hell's name are you talking to?" she demanded.

Glitch giggled mischievously, and jumped, his body horizontal and his hands playing with Rasa's hair. The older dancer winced. "The kid that's pulling my hair," he mumbled while trying to avoid the flying ghost. "The..." he faltered, "the translucent one."

"Wha–" Lima began, but was cut off as she saw Rasa's hair getting pulled at by invisible hands. "What kid? You're talking about _Glitch_?"

Rasa poked Glitch in the chest. He was still solid when it happened, and Glitch felt a slight jab before the pain resided again. The DCI leader pronounced in his usual commanding air, "You, Mister, have some explaining to do."

Lima raised an eyebrow. "If you're talking to 'Glitch,' _you _have some explaining to do yourself. Besides, you haven't proven anything to me."

Rasa shrugged. "I don't need to. Glitch?"

Glitch nodded, eying Lima evilly. He rubbed his palms together before he catapulted himself into the air and swooped down like a meteor. Then he landed, absorbing all the force he could as he could before he had to go insubstantial. His impact caused his surroundings to quiver slightly, like a mini grenade. It obviously wasn't enough, though, so he grabbed himself yet another spray can. _What's it with people and spray cans? _He wondered.

He expertly tossed the can from one hand to another and wrote down in huge, graffiti-style letters. When he was done with his masterpiece, the heavily made words read 'GLITCH WAS HERE.'

Lima's mouth was agape. Glitch groaned loudly, then drew slight, smaller letters that read 'N if ya dont believ it, den go getta life!' Then Glitch crumpled the can with effort, but after he spent his energy, it poured back into him again each time.

Rasa was laughing now, something he rarely did. Lima couldn't believe her eyes. "So... Glitch, right? Is there no way you can just show yourself to me?" She tried to keep her voice casual, but Glitch knew that she was a little fearful. "Not that I know of," said Glitch, and Rasa recited the words to Lima. Then Glitch reeled a list of his abilities. "As a ghost, well, I can go through things, I can still influence objects, I can fly, and somehow I don't seem to lose energy. I'm not sure, but maybe I don't need to breathe."

Lima shrugged when Rasa repeated the words to her. Glitch piped up with, "Well, we can go back now, can't we? How are you supposed to explain this at Headquarters? I don't think you'd have the technology to help a ghost."

Rasa laughed. "We came here without telling anyone. They're probably hanging out on their own venues," he told the prodigy, ruffling the kid's black hair. Glitch protested angrily. "Hey! Gerr' off me!"

Lima looked to be left our of the conversation. "All right. Now let's hope Boomy here has enough star power by now. Which he does," she reported while checking the boombox. "We're all set."

"Great!" Glitch bounced up and down, eventually zooming up and landing on all fours. "But Lima won't tell anyone, will she? Like maybe Mo?" he questioned anxiously.

Rasa held up a finger to Lima. "Would that be a good thing or a bad thing?" he asked the ghost.

"I don't know... it's just that, I'm not sure Mo would believe you anyway. Especially if you admit that you're the only one that can see me. I don't think flying cans would work around him, he'd just assume that you used a hologram or something."

Rasa stared seriously at the ghost-prodigy. "Would he believe the fact that I used spray cans to prank everyone at DCI Headquarters and _still _draw a moustache on my own face?" he hollered, rubbing his cheek, where paint used to be.

"Good point... but no." Glitch gazed at his translucent shoes. "He wouldn't believe it, I'll bet you."

For once, Rasa seemed to actually feel some sympathy for the ghost. "Don't worry," he murmured smoothly, "He'll fins out one way or another. For now, though, we need to focus on getting back to our own era. You don't belong here, especially when your, uh, _body _is still back at the 10s..." Rasa broke off, and Glitch burst into laughter. "Uh, yeah."

Lima's face was blank. "So... we're going back, right?" she indicated the boombox. "It's ready."

The trio took their places and Glitch felt a slight vibration shake his now-solid body. He felt like he was being sucked into a pool of endless quicksand, and he snapped his eyes shut.

Then he felt himself falling, falling...

**Don't worry, falling is normal in the timestream :P**

**So I haven't really left you with a cliffhanger, but enjoy the chapter anyway.**


	8. Chapter 7: To Be A Spirit

Being back in the timestream without feeling any pain was a whole new experience for Glitch. Not only did it feel strange to him, it also felt as if the journey through time felt normal to him, in a way. Everyone else was used to gravity, so floating about in the timestream could feel unsettling until they regained the ability to stand and keep moving through the timestream. For Glitch, though, it was now normal, as he had grown used to flying. He realized that he had also grown used to seeing him as a ghost, with his surroundings only a shade darker to mark his existence, only in his and Rasa's eyes.

Now the two other dancers were having slight problems with getting their balance back. Soon, they gained their footing, making sure that they kept moving. Lima's face was different; she was usually a workaholic that took care of her work well, but now she showed a bit of uncertainty. Glitch couldn't blame her. In fact, he was a little impressed, remembering Glitch's own reaction to him becoming a ghost.

Amusing as it was, dancing to get out of the timestream was essential. At least there was a helping beat. Rasa and Lima didn't seem as queasy as Glitch would have been as a normal person, which made Glitch a little jealous. Somehow, the time machine managed to get him as the easiest prey to catch. Few others were set back by the machinery.

Making sure that he was solid, Glitch danced again, but his thoughts wandered. He thought about Mo, and what the older dancer was thinking of. Rasa had said that the now-alone Hi-Def dancer would probably be at his own venue, but Glitch doubted the truth. Perhaps Mo was still in Glitch's apartment, thinking about his protégé. To everyone but Glitch and the two DCI leaders, the prodigy was completely unaware of what was happening. They would be wishing for the young dancer to wake up and ask, 'What have I missed?' when the real deal was that he was already there, watching, listening, and alert, even though no one could see or hear him.

Something poked his side. Glitch shook his head, and found himself face-to-face with Rasa. "You've stopped dancing," murmured the older dancer. "Oh, sorry," Glitch apologized. He knew the disaster if he had stopped moving for too long. Swallowing – if ghosts could swallow, that was – Glitch concentrated on his dancing, trying to shake his thoughts off his mind like swatting a fly with his hand. Soon, he felt as if he was lifted up against his own will, and was thrown violently out of the void. He hastily switched into insubstantial mode, and emerged from the time machine. Then they stepped out from the time machine, the light flooding around them until Glitch was forced to screw his eyes shut. When he opened them again, he realized that Rasa and Lima were standing in front of him, and he was floating close behind.

Rasa sighed. "Well, now I suppose you should tell us what happened." The entire HQ was empty. Rasa and Lima must have traveled to the 80s without telling anyone after all, Glitch realized. Not even one of their many agents was present.

Glitch thought about it. He decided to begin from the start. "You know that night when you had that dance party? The night of the crash? I didn't know how, but I just woke up and I was like... this. My head hurt, but not too long. Then I looked at my hand and saw it like this." He held up his arm. "When I got up and walked, I felt strange, so I jumped. That was when I had learned that I could fly. It felt... weird. Then I discovered that I could fly. I met Angel, and tried to talk to him, but he didn't answer me. That was how I found myself as a ghost." Rasa began to nod, understanding. "Still, you didn't have to do all –" he gestured at the entire, still paint-stained room, "– _this._"

The ghostly boy just laughed. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that. I'll clean up if you need me to. I don't run out of energy, remember?" he raised an eyebrow, and Rasa nodded. "That's... unusual of you, but if you like, you can do it."

"Yup." Glitch retreated and searched for something safe to clean the place with. Rasa told him where to find a cleaning fluid, and Glitch set to work. He scrubbed the entire place, but even though he was a ghost, he still had two hands, and he needed to take time. Rasa kept Glitch occupied by continuously talking about what being a ghost felt like. Occasionally, Lima would ask Glitch something, and Rasa would convey Glitch's words to her. It was a roundabout way of conversation, but it would do nevertheless. Glitch erased the last line of paint on the floor. "There," he said, satisfied. Rasa shoved the ghost. Still solid, Glitch was thrown slightly off balance so that he had to take flight. "Hey!" he protested.

"What?" asked Rasa. "Serves you right for being such a prankster. Once you get back to normal, Mister, you are doing backflips until you throw up."

Looking at the stainless floor, Glitch sulked. "What makes you think I'm going back to my normal body at all?" he hollered, his arms crossed. "Well... technically, you're not, um, dead, are you?" Rasa pronounced cautiously. Glitch replied with, "Dunno. Gotta leg it, see you," he called over his shoulder before flying upwards, concerned.

Rocketing towards the sky at a doubled speed, Glitch felt as if he were bursting from the underground Headquarters. He was flying so fast he could barely see the roads underneath him as they zoomed past his eyes. Gaining speed, Glitch shot through the skies like a silver bullet. He was going so fast, and somehow he knew exactly where he was going. His surroundings blurred past, and Glitch felt a strange urgency. He followed his senses, being pulled towards something like a metal coin being attracted by an excessively strong magnet.

He screeched to a complete stop in less than three seconds. He felt as if he were panting, and the energy that powered him took a while to fill him up again. _Huh, _he thought, _guess even a ghost takes time to recharge. _But now that he had recovered, it was time to look around. Gazing at the things around him, he realized that he had been here before, but he didn't know when. He squinted, and recognized this place as a hospital. A very, very familiar one. Glitch felt chills run down his ghostly spine. He wandered around until he found a door. It was closed, so Glitch went through it.

To his fear, he found himself behind the door.

**...yeah, Glitch hadn't seen his body earlier. I just wanted that dramatic moment where a ghost sees his body. **

**Review to reduce Glitch's utter terror!**


	9. Chapter 8: Second Player Detected

**Did this in a bit of a rush, so sorry if there are any mistakes. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

It took Glitch a moment to fathom the sight in front of him.

The young protégé in front of him was lying on the hospital bed. His face was partly hidden behind a breathing mask. His mouth was open, and his breathing was slow. There was a bandage on his head. Dark jet black hair hung over his closed eyes. There were small scratches on his face. One of his wrists was connected to a small plastic tube. More half-healed scratches and small cuts lined his arms. One of his legs was wrapped up in a bone-white cast. There was no hint of blood, but Glitch could tell that some serious injury had hit him.

Glitch had a hard time trying to understand and comprehend this. Was this injured, hurt, _weak _prodigy really him? A broken reflection of him in a shattered mirror. A different, hidden side of him. A burned-out wire. A _Glitch. _That was what it was. Cautiously, the ghost circled the bed. Was this how he looked like in everyone else's eyes?

_No. _Glitch shook his head. He had to heal. Somehow, he had to find a way to return to normal, and rewind his life... but how? Glitch laid a translucent hand on his pale arm. He let himself lose solidity, and plunged through himself. Nothing happened. Not a sound, now a movement, not a blur in his eyes, just plain, heart-thumping _nothingness. _Emptiness. Loss.

He stood, floated, sat, and lay down close to himself for long moments before he decided that there was just no way of him getting in. He even tried to talk to himself. He liked being a ghost, but if no one could see him, then, well, being normal again would be beyond worth the effort.

Sighing, he gave up and flew upwards, then directed himself towards the Lowdown Hi-Def turf, the subways. Once again he felt the rush of cool air bathing his lungs – well, the closest thing a ghost had to lungs – and the wind against his hair, the thrilling flight that he had once thought of as impossible.

This lit up his dim mood. Soaring above made him feel so calm. He torpedoed through a huge cirrus cloud and dove through it, exposing the world to him. He easily located the subways and he made his way to it.

While he did this he thought of the sixth sense he had discovered. He could locate his body at any time. Even now, he could feel his true self's heartbeat, slow breathing, and the silence. It was like he was in two places at the same time.

Glitch descended through the top of the subway, where a huge opening let light streaming through and showed him where he and Mo usually danced to, mainly before DCI. After that, they had spent less time there, especially when Tan's army had temporarily taken over the place. After the fall of the M.O.C. Crew, Glitch and Mo had claimed the place as Hi-Def turf once more. But now, there was no music playing. Glitch looked around, but he found little more than the fact that the place he and Mo usually danced at was empty.

Fed up, Glitch flew back to find Mo. "Wait," he decided, then hovered above a track. And then a train zoomed past him, flashing images of people inside the train blurring past Glitch's bewildered eyes. "Whoa!" he yelped, laughing. At least he would be the only person in the world who purposefully stood – or in this case, floated – in front of a train and survived without _one scratch. _"Always wanted to do that," he muttered under his breath, panting, exhilarated.

Down to the DCI Headquarters for Glitch. Looking up at the sun, Glitch estimated that he had spent at least two hours ever since he left Rasa. Perhaps Mo had gone back to the Headquarters, possibly to get his mind off of the sneaky prodigy.

Flying was simple, easy, and quick, and Glitch made it there soon enough. It turned our that, somehow, Rasa had managed to round up all the dancers that were well affiliated with the DCI. Glitch floated through a wall, finding Rasa and Lima standing close to the huge, sophisticated computers. Boomy was recording Riptide's moves, both dancers doing well. Bodie was almost finished, and soon he and Emilia were doing their personal outros.

Mo was standing a little way away, his expression shielded by the top of his gray-and-black striped hoodie. Glitch, with a slight bit of guilt biting at him, positioned himself next to his mentor.

Rasa spotted the ghost-protégé and made a sympathetic look through knowing eyes. Glitch nodded, knowing that it wasn't Rasa's fault that he was stuck in this predicament. The superior dancer bent down slightly to whisper something in Lima's ear. She turned to Rasa and said something, but it was quieted and Glitch didn't bother hearing their words anyway.

Glitch stood with his arms crossed like he would have done any day. The only difference was that no one gave the slightest hint that they saw him. Usually, they would greet or acknowledge Glitch, even if it were only a tiny nod or a friendly smile.

Then Rasa programmed the computer to take two dancers to the '00s. This instantly perked Glitch up. He shoved Rasa aside, and instead chose the '90s for the Riptide crew. The two unaware Riptide dancers were waiting for Lima to clarify the safety and security of the time machine. And, because she couldn't see Glitch, gave them permission to enter the timestream, not knowing their destination. Meanwhile Glitch dragged an unwilling Rasa to one side with his ghost strength. "What in the name of Dr. Tan, are you doing?!" whispered Rasa. Glitch just grinned micheviously and said, "What a prankster does," and held Rasa back as the two unsuspecting dancers were led unto the timestream. Soon, they disappeared into the void.

"Jackpot!" laughed Glitch, while Rasa was squirming under hid solid grip.

**Aye, the prankster's back in the game! Would you like Glitch to come along and cause **_**more **_**trouble for Riptide or let him send everyone else to the wrong eras? **

**Please review your opinions :)**

**Agent Glitch out, see ya!**


	10. Chapter 9: Protégé Predicaments

"Nailed it!"

Glitch laughed, locking Rasa in position, keeping a hand on his mouth to prevent the older dancer from raising the alarm. His iron grip was so hard that Rasa actually had a hard time breathing. Once the time machine closed again, Glitch let Rasa go and darted into hiding, out of the DCI leader's sight. With his speed, Glitch managed to nestle between two dancers without having to de-solidify himself. His dark red shoes hovered a few inches above the floor while Rasa frantically searched for the ghost-protégé.

Unbeknownst to the DCI leader, Glitch was beginning to sneak around again to trap his next prey: Lu$h. Angel and Aubrey were doing a duo dance, and the rest of DCI's agents were enjoying themselves or working the computers. Disinterested in them, Glitch waited until Rasa was a good distance away from him before flying to the time machine controller again. He selected the '80s and password-locked the decision so that it would be hard to reset the time coordinating.

Rasa was drawing himself further and further from the controls in search of the prodigy. Glitch knew that it was hard for Rasa to wander freely at the Headquarters, as he had to keep a close eye on the dance floor goings-on. Mo, noticing his odd behaviour, turned to question Rasa. Glitch kept his distance and waited until Boomy was fully powered. Rasa jolted hastily when Mo asked him on his wandering, and Glitch just waited as Rasa groped for am excuse.

"Just looking for something," said Rasa lamely in the end. Mo shrugged, and Glitch had to stifle a soft giggle. Meanwhile, Aubrey was running her hands through her red hair, fixing the small pink ribbon. Angel rolled his eyes, but shied away when Aubrey gave him a death stare. The time machine opened, and light pooled over the room, so bright that Glitch shielded his eyes and looked away. Once the fierce light died away, Glitch looked back, and Angel and Aubrey were gone. _Perfect, _Glitch thought, and whipped around to see Rasa with crossed arms and one eyebrow raised. "What?" Glitch asked innocently. Luckily, Rasa hadn't seen him do anything, so the older dancer turned back to Lima.

_Bah, _Glitch scoffed in his head. _Typical. _Then he floated above the time machine, curious. He turned himself insubstantial, then carefully circled the machine, making sure he didn't go too far or plunge through the timestream again. If he did, Rasa would be the one to take him back, and there was no guarantee that it would be easy. After all, how could DCI's number one workaholic explain that he needed the entire Headquarters empty? Glitch shook his head, losing interest on the machine. He turned back to position himself next to Mo, waiting for his chance to send Flash4ward to the '70s.

Taye was already preparing herself for the dance, while her younger sister Lil'T was in deep conversation with one of the DCI agents. She seemed oblivion to the fact that she would have to go soon. Taye pulled her over, and she protested crossly. The older sister had a difficult time silencing the girl. Glitch rolled his eyes. The action could take forever to start. Meanwhile, Lil'T kept going on and on about her 'wonderful conversation.'

"I wanted to know how the time machine worked!"

"Well too bad, it's time for us to use it." Taye grabbed her sister's wrist. Lil'T fought back.

"Don't forget we didn't clean up last time."

"Girl, I told you before. You weren't even born yet." Taye dragged her sister to the Boomy, and Lil'T stopped her rambles and began to dance. Glitch waited until Rasa was once more out of hearing-and-seeing range. The ghost-prodigy rubbed his hands together, solidifying himself and choosing the '70s, but Rasa caught him. "Don't think you can outwit me twice," hissed the older man into Glitch's unsuspecting ear.

_How the Holy Chocolate Popsicles did he get here so fast? _Glitch thought, but then laughed. "I have, and now it's time to add one more prank to the list. Would you like another strangling?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow and walking closer to Rasa each second, knowing how intimidating a ghost would look like that way.

Rasa's eyes darted around, and he was beginning to panic. Glitch quickly grabbed his arm, used a hand to gag the older dancer, and dragged him to a corner. Rasa grunted, but Glitch didn't let go. Luckily, everyone's eyes were on Flash4ward, so there was little chance of anyone noticing Rasa wrestling an invisible ghost. Glitch pulled Rasa down to all fours, then darted as fast as he could to the machine again, and reprogrammed the computers while Rasa frantically nudged dancers aside on the warpath to Glitch. Fortunately for the prankster, he had quick hands for typing, and had the computer on lock. Glitch sneaked through the watching crowd, avoiding Rasa.

Once Flash4ward were finished, Glitch laughed idiotically, mocking Rasa. Lima let the crew Flash4ward enter the time machine, and with another blinding flash of bright light, the two were gone to a different era. Not the one they desired, Glitch knew. He giggled again, imagining the looks on everyone's faces once they got to their eras. So it was Riptide to the '90s, Lu$h to the '80s, and Flash4ward to the '70s. Bodie would be confused, Emilia too. Aubrey wouldn't be pleased at all, while Angel would still concentrate on getting more fans. Taye and her sister would both try to figure out why the two DCI leaders 'accidentally' sent then to the wrong era. Rasa finally located the prankster, but failed to catch the sneaky prodigy as he leaped up and remained suspended in the air. Rasa glared angrily at the easygoing protégé, his hands clenching and unclenching ini fists. Glitch had to try so hard not to burst laughing again. He made a daring jump to grab Rasa's hair, annoying the older man again. Rasa darted off and Glitch gave up with his playful go-around. He pushed taller dancers aside and went to sit with Mo. His mentor was talking to a group of other DCI agents.

Glitch began to think of better ways to prank once Boomy got filled in with calls of frantic questions.

**So, I've done one chapter, one more to go! Will hopefully be up by around... five a.m. American time. Or at least that's what I can make out by quick calculating. Time zones are so annoying sometimes :/**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my chapter. Sorry if you find any typos, expect them fixed by tomorrow if you do. I will try to update as soon and as often as possible from now on. Please review your thoughts if you don't mind; a few sentences can help bend the plot for the better :)**

**Agent Glitch logging off, laptop shuttin' down.**


	11. Chapter 10: Timestream Trouble

**Again, my apologies for the late chapter. Enjoy anyway... if you can :P**

To Glitch, it looked like Rasa was trying his best not to look like a fool.

Lima was the only one who didn't stare at Rasa accusingly. Everyone else was either doing that or just looking plainly at Boomy, where Aubrey's complaining voice went on and on. She had never liked being in the '70s, so being in the '80s wouldn't make much of a difference. She demanded a return right away. She had yet to learn the era's moves, but she and Angel just barely managed to earn enough points from Boomy so they could return. Glitch decided to stay out of everyone's way and just hover leisurely above the puzzled crowd. Lima gestured at Rasa, and they manned the computers until the time machine finally opened, the lines of purple showing before the light grew bright again, and Aubrey appeared first. Angel was behind her, a displeased look on his face.

Glitch took one look at Aubrey's snobby face and grimaced. Her hands were on her hips and there was a sneer on her face. "Well, thanks to that little silliness, I'm going to need a stylist," she declared, and sashayed out, her hair slightly puffed up. Angel threw everyone an apologetic expression and mouthed something that was probably the word '_triste_.' Glitch lingered aloft, and Rasa shook his head at him. The dance apprentice merely crossed his arms.

Not long after, Boomy began shaking, and Lima pressed a button on the boombox, and the new that followed quickly changed into Emilia's voice. "We can't continue our show here! I thought you programmed the computers right, Rasa." A couple dancers turned pointedly towards the not-so-trusty DCI leader, bur Rasa swallowed and tried not to appear fazed by the prying eyes. Emilia went on a roll, with Bodie trying to calm her down. Rasa loped off to one touchscreen device and Glitch saw images and texts spread out across the technological screens; a purple background with light-colored letters, symbols and sometimes images. This time, the ghost-prodigy didn't interfere.

The two halves of the time machine separated, glowed, shone fire-bright, dimmed, and returned to normal, all in the course of a few seconds. Emilia was the first one that entered Glitch's sight. Bodie was behind her. They didn't look pleased at all. Rasa looked away. Emilia demanded for Riptide to be sent back to the '00s right away. Lima agreed with them, and the two lifeguard-themed dancers were sent back to the '00s. Glitch decided not to cause too much trouble just yet.

Everyone waited expectantly for Boomy to ring once more and for Flash4ward to return, but they didn't call. Lima predicted that the two would instead be enjoying things, but Rasa declared that they be taken back and sent to their proper era. "You know how those two didn't respect the time-space continuum last time. What if the same things happens to the '70s? It's better to keep them in one timeline."

After a bit of vicious debating, it was finally decided that they follow Rasa's words despite the current goings-on. They contacted Flash4ward using Boomy. Just like what Lima had guessed, they were simply enjoying themselves at the Free Skate venue. They weren't as successful as Lu$h when it came to the fans, however. "Well, yeah. At least they've got hot dogs," Lil'T said. Lima shook her head. "Well, I suppose you can't have your hot dog unless you want it to come back up in the timestream," she said, her voice purposefully loud. Glitch heard Lil'T snort. The ghost groaned inwardly, and Lima continued to talk to the sisters.

On went the long, persuasive conversation that took up ten minutes. With one method or another, Rasa finally managed to get the two to be sent to their proper era. They didn't need to return to Headquarters for that, so they communicated with them through our their way to the '90s. While Lu$h were stuck at an expensive styling salon, Mo was unable to go alone without a crew. He was put on hold reluctantly by Rasa, which actually made Glitch a little relieved, even though he knew the timestream had no strong influence on his health anymore.

With the time shuffle sorted out, Mo announced that he was leaving to check on Glitch once more. Rasa dismissed him shortly, and Glitch followed his mentor obediently on foot. The strange thing was that Mo took a longer route that also passed the Lowdown subways. For a moment the African-American circled the area. A few other dancers, such as the Hi-Def backup dancers, waved and called, but Mo shook his head and went on. Glitch wished that he could cheer his mentor up somehow. _Holy Chocolate Popsicles, _he thought frustratingly, _this isn't working out right. _He longed for a way to lighten up his mentor's dim mood. As Glitch shadowed his mentor in complete since, he was trapped neck-deep in thought.

With a long sigh, he tailed Mo until they were approximately a mile away from the hospital; Glitch could sense his true self strongly. He didn't follow Mo any further, as he didn't think he could bear a moment longer with the solemn air that he felt from Mo. He turned back with a slow walk, his back hunched, but then shot up to the skies again. Perhaps he had another chance? He would ask Rasa if there was a way for him to reveal not only the fact that he was just fine, but also the existence of ghosts. Maybe, if he took advantage of the capability of solidifying, and binding that with the high-tech equipment of the DCI, something could work out. He never really knew who was the brain behind all the sophistication, but hopefully Rasa and Lima would suffice.

With that new hope rising in him, he flew fast and swift on his way back to the Headquarters. And if all went well, hopefully he wouldn't be there to prank. On his frantic flight to the underground HQ, he passed a tall building embroidered in bright diamond-like lights. He descended, finding Lu$h exiting the building and entering a pricey car. Glitch pitied the hairdresser that had spun Aubrey's hair into such an 'art,' as the Lu$h 'leader' must have yelled at some poor expert many a time. Assuming that the crew would arrive short after Glitch, he continued on his way back.

Newborn anticipation in his heart, he made it to the HQ faster than a racecar.


	12. Chapter 11: Rule Breaker

**Tests are playing the Dr. Tan to my DCI, but right now the antagonist's got the upper hand. I probably won't be able to even go on as often as I used to. To keep you entertained until then, well, I'm recommending PunkRoseBlitz's Dancing Diamond again, because there's 49k words laid out for you already. You could also read my other fanfic, Euphoric, if you like.**

**I'm also preparing a two-shot for you, which is what would happen if Glitch stayed a ghost forever. Don't worry, that won't happen in this story, because that two-shot will be nothing more than a 'what if' to satisfy a reader's hunger. I'm giving you a preview :)**

_"To define his current situation with a cave would be simple."_

_"Seconds became minutes. Minutes became hours. Hours became days, and as the hourglass was turned around and the sand seeped through the small opening, time went on. He was trapped. He did not know how he was trapped; he had been engrossed in his seeking to realize how fast the clock ticked. He tried to retrace his faint steps. He tried to dig deeper, fly higher, but the only company he had now were the bats. He tolerated them for his own sake, trying to maintain his sanity, but their continuous shrieking made it hard for him to stay self-possessed. He felt as if he were dancing on the edge of madness."_

_"Snatches of the memory flashed through his mind. Glitch, which was what he called himself, let a lucid, non-substantive tear run down his bone-pale cheek."_

**So, that's what you have for now. I really am sorry, and I hope you will still be a loyal reader to me, thanks!**

**'KanG out, hoping things turn out great (not likely)!**

**Update: Managing to squeeze in a chapter when you really need to study isn't easy, but still... tomorrow's English, so I'll ace. Enjoy, and thanks for the review Rose :)**

Glitch exploded into the Headquarters. Rasa was standing close to the computers, and practically hit his head on the ceiling jumping in surprise when Glitch suddenly yelled, "Rasa!"

"What the –?!" Rasa's hands spun in the air, his face priceless. Glitch laughed. "Sorry... but it was worth it!" He doubled up and giggled while Rasa simply stared at the ghost. One of his hands was half-raised and the other was on his chest. After a moment he dropped the pose and waited until Glitch was done with his laughing. Finally, the ghost blinked and stopped his convulsions, but the humorous glow still showed in his eyes and the lopsided smile was still on his face. "Sor-ree," he muttered again, rubbing the back of his neck. "By the way, Primadonna Princess and Prince Perfection are on the way here," he informed Rasa absently, rolling his eyes.

"You didn't come all the way here just to tell me that, right?" Rasa asked suspiciously. "Nah," Glitch said, standing solid on the floor with his hands clasped neatly behind his back, "I just realized something... are you sure there's no technology that can help a ghost?" His green orbs shone hopefully as he spoke. Rasa walked over to an opening that lead towards a corridor. "Coming?" he beckoned. Glitch followed, walking instead of flying. Through the corridor they went, until Rasa stopped at a door and opened it. Rasa had his eyes fixed on a device thoughtfully.

Glitch watched as Rasa took a helmet that was only too similar to Dr. Tan's mind control device. "Wh... what 'cha gonna do with that?" Glitch questioned carefully. Rasa rubbed the smooth purple helmet, and explained, "This is one of the few devices we've got that manipulates the mind." Glitch tilted his head quizzically, not understanding. "You see," Rasa continued, "only a couple devices work with the human mind. I was thinking that, using the technology that Tan inputted, I could conjure up an image of you as a ghost from my memory and –"

"And, and?!" Glitch pressed. The older dancer sighed. "With that knowledge, we'd be a step closer to enabling people to see you, perhaps with the help of this mind-controlling helmet." Rasa carried the helmet over to Glitch. The ghost-protégé took a closer inspection and shrugged. "Don't see how that'll work," he grumbled. The DCI leader just took the helmet back and placed it safely in storage. "We'll have to try again later, then," he answered. Glitch hesitated before turning back, reluctance tugging him all the way. "Very well," he replied civilly.

Rasa looked back. "I'll make sure we'll work on it," he whispered promisingly, getting closer to the main dance floor. He paused, then stepped over to Lima and leaned over to talk to her in hushed voices. Glitch was left for himself. Sighing, he floated higher, then noticed Angel and Aubrey. They were both in their DCI outfits, and both appeared smarter and snazzier. Glitch exhaled again, then dove out of the underground HQ. Instead of flying, he walked again, and chose to pay a visit to Riptide beach. Why Riptide? Glitch shook his head and prepared led for a good dose of pranking. It was about time.

Both Bodie and Emilia were still at the DCI Headquarters, so Glitch had a good chance of being able to find a good prank or two. He was a good planner. Grinning maliciously, he began to think up the pranks he would pull. He was practically listing them.

"Prank A, baby powder in the hair dryer. Prank B, rainbow cereal all around, prank C, _strawberry pie..."_

He arrived at the Riptide beach. It was time to spice things up.

Being the weekly prankster, he always had tricks up his sleeve. He had all the trickery gear he needed at home. With his ghost strength, he flew home faster than a bullet in the World War II. He flew low and close to the ground at the moment, laughing maniacally as obstacles whizzed past his eyes, which shimmered like chips of nephrite jade. Crashing into his room, he found the baby powder and cereal stashed away with all his other prank gear, so he chose a fishing line to tie around and lots, lots of glue. He supposed the pie would have to come from somewhere else. Perhaps he would steal it... then again, Glitch would always save best for last. Grabbing a plastic bag full of feathers, Glitch decided that what he had would be sufficient. For now, at least.

This time, with his load, he would need to fly very high. Even though he had often soared above the clouds, the magnitude and size of the majestic clouds still made him gape. They towered over him, white and gray blending with the sky blue. Every cloud had a silver lining, they said, and Glitch could see a partial truth in the words. Once he could, he zoomed down and hid his stash. First, he dug a huge hole in the ground, and then filled it with all kinds of junk. He found a pole, so he searched for a wooden plank and wrote down the word 'Free Souvenirs!' Bodie and Emilia would flip when they saw the hole filled with damp seaweed and metal scrap, plus a whole lot of stuff Glitch didn't bother mentioning.

He filled Emilia's hair dryer with the powder and glued cereal on Bodie's towels. He even turned off all the water pumps, tying the fishing line on everything he could get his hands on. He imagined Emilia covered with powder and trying to get her way to the water pumps to turn the water on. Then he went back to the the feather and tied buckets filled with them over all the doors he could find. He squirted glue into each bucket as well. Then, just to add the fun, he covered the entire basketball court in glue. It was a wonder how a teen like Glitch could get so much glue.

"Let the madness commence," he sniggered.


	13. Chapter 12: Ripping The Tide

**I'm officially back, guys :D**

**This is going to be merciless with revenge on the line... and hopefully a review or two as well :P**

Glitch rubbed his hands together and waited. Bored, he decided to do one more _little _thing: tie Bodie's prized surfboard to the crowns of two palm trees. "No big deal, right?" chortled the ghostly protégé.

He made the best of Riptide's absence and grabbed the surfboard. He hauled it up and looped the fishing line countless times over the board and around the trees. The trees were about twelve feet tall, so it would be nerve-racking to try and bring it down safely.

Then Glitch decided that a finishing touch would be okay. He flew close to Bodie's tall lifeguard chair and somehow managed to pry out the nails that held the wooden steps together. He also found the lifeguard-dancer's megaphone.

He spent a long while searching for Bodie's toolbox, and once he found the right screwdriver he unscrewed the lid that kept the batteries inside. He took out the batteries and hid them in the toolbox before returning it. He also kept the megaphone setting on loud. If Bodie put the batteries back inside, then tested it immediately, the sound that would come out would be extremely ear-splitting.

Satisfied at last with his work, Glitch heaved the toolbox back even though it wasn't all that heavy for him. He waited for his prey to come. His jaw dropped open when he realized that four crews were coming: Riptide, Flash4ward, Lu$h, and the DCI. Mo was present as well. Were they going to have another party? However, Glitch didn't see Oblio with them. That didn't surprise him.

Watching from above wasn't very comfortable for the ghost, so he descended and solidified himself, welcoming the feeling of standing on his two feet. Everyone was wearing casual clothes, except of course Riptide, who were still in their DCI outfits. They would probably want to change soon. Perfect.

"Emilia, what is the meaning of this?" asked a disgusted Aubrey, indicating the riddled mess in the junk-filled hole. "Free souvenirs?" Lil'T questioned, one eyebrow raised. She squatted near the hole's opening. Glitch saw the chance and shoved her in. "Mmph!" protested the Flash4ward dancer. Glitch made sure that the girl didn't injure herself. Lucky for them, the metal junk was beneath a lifetime's supply of seaweed. Still, that didn't seem to make T feel any better. Bodie pulled her up, and wrinkled his nose. "You smell... ah well, you know," he amended hastily. Taye glared at the lifeguard, not even pausing to thank the blonde. Emilia checked the younger dancer for scratches. Lil'T proved to be unscathed. "You'd better clean up. And watch your step next time," advised Emilia. "You remember where the baths are, right?"

"Yep." T tried not to look fazed while she picked her way carefully to the baths, Taye following afterwards to help her sister, Emilia tailing the duo, and Bodie coming along to use the male baths. Rasa, who had seen the entire thing, grabbed Glitch when he was busy gloating. "Why, you little, what if she had gotten hurt?" Rasa hissed into the prodigy's ear. "Chillax," Glitch replied coolly, "It's not like anything's gonna happen... yet," he said with a flashy knowing grin. He de-solidified himself and Rasa lost his grip on the sneaky ghost. Aubrey stepped back, a sneer on her face again. Angel out a hand on her shoulder, only to be pushed away. Glitch could see his unhappy expression beneath the Latino's visor, but Angel managed to hide it quickly enough.

A yell echoed from the baths. Emilia, Taye and Lil'T went out, all of them covered in glue and feathers. The bag which contained their extra clothes, fortunately, was unstained. Bodie, who had his hand on the male baths' doorknob, jerked his hand away as if he had a burn. "...ew," he said haughtily. That fired Lil'T up immediately. "Don't 'ew' me!" she hollered. Glitch snorted loudly. Too bad the lifeguard-dancer didn't open his own door. At least someone would take the bait in time.

"Who..." Emilia began. She studied the expressions on all the dancers' faces. "I don't have a clue."

Bodie leaned over. "I thought everyone was still at DCI Headquarters. Rasa?" The Riptide dancer nodded towards Rasa. "Riptide, Flash4ward, Lu$h, Ninja, Mo, Oblio, and of course Lima and yours truly," replied the DCI leader. For once, he was actually covering for Glitch. "Still, this does look like something a certain absent protégé would do," he pointed out sarcastically.

The ghost-protégé just shrugged and watched as Taye, Emilia and Lil'T carefully entered the baths again. They would definitely want to take a shower now. What they didn't know was that there was no shower without any water. Then again, they would learn that soon enough.

"The water's not running!" Lil'T screamed from inside. She sounded very annoyed and fed up, obviously. Glitch moaned again, even though only Rasa could hear him. Bodie ran to the water pump controls. "I'll get it," he offered before anyone could object. Glitch followed, Rasa's face showing that dreading statement where a sneaky green-eyed prodigy gets a prank set up without anyone realizing it. The blond lifeguard made it to the water pump controls and opened the door to the room, then barely paused before running to the controls. Within a millisecond he tripped on one of the stringy fishing lines. "Holy –?!" he yelped before colliding headfirst onto the hard floor. Fortunately, it wasn't much of a blow, and he recovered quickly. Glitch heard an ear-piercing yell from the baths again. "The water still isn't running!"

"I know," Bodie called back, his voice almost unheard. Angel, however, heard the call and rushed over. He exclaimed something in Spanish before carefully making his way through the strings and slowly pulling Bodie out, with Lima, Rasa and and Mo lent a helping hand soon afterwards, and somehow they were capable of pulling the lifeguard out without a scratch. "Thanks," Bodie panted, then glared contemptuously at Aubrey, who had only stood by watching. The Lu$h dancer didn't say anything.

"I think I'm going home, guys," said Mo suddenly. "Don't think there's going to be much of a party at this state." Angel shrugged at the leave-taking Hi-Def dancer. "_Adiós, _then, _amigo,_" he said, waving. Mo waved back, then walked away while Bodie rubbed his head. "Ouch."

Glitch decided to make use of his brother's absence. He sneaked around until he found a piece of paper and a pen. He found them on a clipboard near the basketball court, so it probably belonged to Bodie. He ripped a sheet of paper off and used the pen to write a note:

_Don't worry, there's still a good dose of pranks up ahead. Be on your guard. _

_Sincerely, _

_The King of Flash_

He made sure that he mimicked Mo's handwriting. Then he hid the note close to all the remains of his prank gear, so that after all his prank traps had been uncovered, he would place the note somewhere obvious. Everyone would have their hackles up by then, expecting Mo to jump out laughing, when in reality the so-called King of Flash was at home alone.

_There's a new King of Flash on the roll, and he isn't slowing down, _Glitch thought.


	14. Chapter 13: King of Flash, Jr

**702 views? Thanks so much, guys X3**

**The two-shot I was planning is taking longer than expected... so enjoy this while you wait :3**

**sarge1130: Thanks for reviewing! Yep, Glitch is the master of pranks, that's for sure. Ghost or not, he'll always find a way to pull your strings. My original plan for this story would have been way too sad, and probably more than a little OOC for Glitch. So, yeah, I guess I like this storyline better.**

**AfricanAmazon: Yep, that's what he is :P**

**Would you readers like a Halloween-themed one-shot related to this story? After all, ghost Glitch loved to scare :D**

**Did this in quite a rush, apologies for mistakes, will fix when I notice them.**

Glitch folded the note up quickly, then hid it. He heard Bodie come up with a pair of odd-looking scissors. The ghost flew over to see what was happening. The blond dancer was busily cutting off the fishing line. It took long, but after a while the Riptide dancer managed to clear up enough space to turn the water pumps on again. "I got it!" he yelled breathlessly. A drop of sweat rolled down his forehead.

Meanwhile, in the baths, a loud shout of "Thank goodness!" resounded from Lil'T. Glitch rolled his eyes and hung a couple feet above the hard cemented floor of the basketball court... which was still covered in glue. Bodie ran that way, and Glitch tripped the lifeguard-dancer over. He fell again, this time on his belly. A loud moan escaped his mouth, and Angel turned around to see Bodie in his odd position. Before the Latino could say anything, Bodie tried to get up, only to find himself stuck to the cemented floor. "Ugh!" he grunted. Glitch hid a smile behind his hand. Angel just gaped. "Can't get up, _amigo_?"

"You don't say," grumbled the lifeguard. He pulled one hand up, and some of the glue gave way. Then he pulled his feet up, but unfortunately his shoes were stuck in place, so he had to get up to his feet wearing socks. Angel laughed at the sight, then lent the lifeguard a helping hand while Aubrey just looked on.

"I don't think I'm fit for this silliness," she decided, and walked off to an expensive-looking car that was parked a distance away. Soon the car's engine rumbled and the redhead rolled off, leaving Angel to facepalm. He pulled Bodie out of the sticky court, and suggested the blonde to change. Bodie shrugged and did so, but when he opened the door, he got dumped with more glue plus feathers.

_He looks a bit like Jaryn, _Glitch thought, his mind laughing. Soon he couldn't help it and burst into giggles. Rasa shook his head exaggeratedly. "Uh." Beside him, Lima whispered something. _Probably talking about the new and improved King of Flash,_ thought the protégé.

Bodie, enraged, stormed into the baths without another word. Just then, Emilia screamed from the ladies' baths. This time, she came out newly changed, and beside her was an inflamed Lil'T. She was covered in the baby powder, and boy, was she mad. A brief image of the Flash4ward dancer punching Glitch in the face was enough to make the ghost shiver a bit. "That's the last straw! Once I'm done here, I am _out_!" she screeched, then stormed back inside without another word. Emilia slapped her forehead and walked back inside.

A couple minutes later, both Angel and Bodie yelled at the same time. Glitch heard Bodie holler, "My towels!" Angel, on the other hand, was pointing at the surfboard, mounted on the palm trees. "_Amigo, _how did –" Angel stopped mid-conversation when he realized that Rasa had also seen the odd sight. Lima turned her head to see it at the same time. "What the – _oh._" she obviously remembered that, somewhere among them, hovered an unpredictably clever protégé turned ghost. "'Oh' what?" demanded Bodie. "You're not telling me that you know who set this up on me, are you?!"

The quartet consisting of Glitch, Angel, Rasa and Lima turned around to see an outraged Bodie who was half-drenched and wearing his crew outfit. In his hand was a crumpled towel with rainbow cereal bits sticking to it. Some of the cereal was already falling to the ground. But the most amusing part was his hair; it was now rainbow-colored. Glitch had no idea that the cereal would have such an influence. Even Rasa couldn't hold himself and began to laugh. Bodie, who had not realized the change in his hair color, just stared at the DCI dancers blankly. Then he fired up again, and held the towel. "Or did one of _you _play this little game on us?!" He began to brush flakes of the cereal odd of the towel, but met little success.

"No, no, no, no, no," Rasa spoke immediately, holding up his hands. "Still... you _might _just want to look into a mirror. You got a bit off something right... there," he hinted, then continued to shriek in laughter. After a while, Lima began to laugh as well. _Nyan Bodie, _thought Glitch. He found the stash of leftover cereal close by, and just to make more fun happen, he took out loads of them and dropped them on Bodie. "_Nyan, nyan, nyan, nyan, nyan, nyan, nyan,_" he hummed. Then Bodie yelled in surprise at the cereal floating on its own and raining over him. Rasa and Lima shared a knowing glance. _Wait... _thought the ghost. _He hasn't noticed the surfboard yet! _Getting the picture, he actually grabbed hold of Bodie's arms and yielded him up to the tree.

"Whaaaaaaa, what the heck is, yaaaaaah!" Bodie screamed pointlessly. He began uttering more meaningless vocals, "Uh, uh, ah, whoa, what? Yeh, yaah! What the surfboard – what? Whaddaya wanna.. uh, ah, huh, what, if the, cereal, rainbows, what? Wait, who – let go of me! Let... go! Ugh! What's happening? Towels... feather, what? Wha... yaaaaaah! Whaaaaaaa, yeh, uh, uhn, um, er... Rasa, Lima, who... your holograms! Dr. Tan... what? Angel, what the heaven heck help halo wings flying for the sake of the way to the place either by phone or something that, uh..."

"Is he okay?" whispered Lima to Rasa, her voice tingling with amusement. "And 'he' is the one responsible for this, right?" "Yep," replied Rasa without taking his eyes off the blond surfer, "He's responsible. And I don't know if he's okay." Angel didn't hear their conversation and continued to watch the struggling lifeguard.

Glitch dropped Bodie on the surfboard, and the Riptide dancer stopped his muttering. Still, he was metres above the ground, so Glitch wondered how he would get down. At the same time, Emilia was trying to reassure Flash4ward that there were no pranks left. Then all their eyes turned towards the 'Nyan Bodie.'

And that was exactly what Lil'T said. "Nyan Bodie," she managed to say between violent giggles. Eventually she began to slap her knee and laugh so hard that she sounded like she was in pain. _Perfect timing, _though Glitch, and went to grab the note he had written. He let the wind carry it. It flew under Angel's nose.

"Don't worry, there's still a good dose of pranks up ahead. Be on your guard. Sincerely, The King of Flash," he read.

"Mo!" exclaimed Lil'T right after she heard the words 'King of Flash.' "It's _gotta _be Mo, he calls himself that a lot."

_I only said it was the King of Flash who did this. I never said who this particular king was, _Glitch thought.


	15. Chapter 14: Struck By A Bolt Of Thought

**Thanks for the review, AfricanAmazon, yep, nyan cats all the way! X3**

**Guest: I never thought of my work as 'hilarious,' which is why I appreciate your review! Nyan :3**

**Done this chapter while laying down and reading a book and chatting, so sorry if you spot any mistakes. Enjoy and tell me what you think of this.**

The so-called King of Flash protégé, self-satisfied, crossed his arms with a vicious smile. Bodie was freaking out on the surfboard, Angel was staring at the blonde like a fool, Rasa was throwing looks of disapproval at the ghost, and Lima was shrugging. Lil'T was trying hard to stop her bursts of laughter, Taye was grinning at the sight of Bodie, Emilia had her hands on her hips, and the prankster ghost himself was beginning to give in to his amusement again.

Poor Bodie was trying to untie the fishing line, but that would be almost impossible. Angel flipped the hard piece of paper between his fingers. Now everyone would be careful not to get pranked. Lil'T finally wiped a tear of mirth from her face and stated, "I'm done," and she and Taye left the beach on foot, leaving the beach to Bodie, Emilia, Rasa, Lima, Glitch and Angel.

The blond dancer carefully put one leg off the board, and laid it gently on one of the palm trees. Glitch could hardly believe it when Bodie slowly shimmied down the trees and landed on all fours. His rainbow-colored hair was ruffled and he looked to be scared out of his wits. He mumbled to himself again, "I, uh... it is... what just happened, the surfboard... wait... _my board_!" he roared.

He grabbed the tool he had used earlier and actually climbed up the edge of the tree again. Clinging to the tree with bare feet, he began to work his board out. Glitch decided to do something once more. He thought of speeding down to grab a bucket, fill it with _more _cereal, and dump the load over Bodie, then repeat the process with Angel, and lastly Emilia. But self-control took a hold on him.

If he had written down that cryptic note, it was up to him to make sure no more pranks occurred. _Well, it turns out that writing that note is condemning myself to torture, _he thought. Shrugging, he flew down and positioned himself between Rasa and Lima. The male DCI dancer noticed him and shuffled back a few steps. "You wrote that accursed note, didn't you?" he asked in a voice that only Glitch and Lima could hear. Lima turned her head to see Rasa's back hunched a little, so she probably got the picture. Meanwhile, Glitch just rolled his eyes. "Duh, obviously. You know it means I won't be doing anything for the rest of the day, right?"

"By 'the rest of the day,' you realize we only have a couple hours of daylight left, right? Like, I don't know, just two?" Rasa muttered pointedly. Glitch nodded. "Isn't that a good thing? Tomorrow everyone's gonna run away from floating spray cans again. The circle of life, in my point of view," he gloated smugly.

Rasa let our a loud sigh as Bodie continued clipping the strings off. Angel watched, while Emilia was trying to encourage Bodie to stop. "It's just a board," she reasoned, but Bodie kept insisting, "It's _my _board. I've had it since Riptide was formed!"

"You're acting like Glitch and his skateboard, _amigo,_" observed Angel. Glitch shuffled his feet coyly at his words. Rasa raised a knowing eyebrow at the ghost-protégé. Bodie shook his head and continued to work. Emilia did a facepalm and dragged herself over to the others.

Finally, Angel decided that there was too little going on and that there was not much of a reason to stay there and watch a rainbow-haired cereal-smelling blonde hobo try to get his surfboard down a tree when it was tied up in a fishing line. The Latino left, while Rasa and Lima got the idea that Angel was right. They left poor Emilia to take care of Bodie so he didn't get a heart attack falling from the tree.

Glitch, knowing that no one would hear his taunting anyhow, followed Rasa and Lima. "Shadow," dogged Rasa immediately. _So much for being the one to tease, _thought Glitch. "It ain't like I got anything left to do," he said, walking with his arms behind his head. However, he still made sure he wasn't solid in case Rasa chose to grab him. The ghost watched Lima. She obviously noticed the fact that Rasa was talking to Glitch.

"It's amusing, you know?" she murmured suddenly, perking up both Rasa and Glitch. She stated, "I know you're here, Glitch, but it's still funny looking at Rasa and seeing him talk to you as if there's no one there." She shrugged and kept walking. Even though it was supposed to be funny, the remark still stung Glitch.

He determined himself to go back and find Mo, as there wasn't much for him to do. There was about an hour and a half left till sundown. Glitch remembered the handful of nights he had spent as a ghost. They were both long and short. Because so little occurred at night, not only did it seem like forever was passing by, it also felt like large portions of waiting had never taken place.

Glitch would also feel drowsy at times, bur his sight never faded and he never lost true consciousness. He did not know if he slept or not, but he was never visited by dreams anymore, but now it was time to relive the strange feeling once more. Perhaps he would muse about the day and more pranks to come up with. He quietly listened to the sound of Rasa and Lima's footsteps.

They synchronized, but Glitch couldn't hear his own steps. The steady _tap, tap, tap _rhythm was disrupted when Rasa turned around. Glitch had stopped moving. "Hey, what up?" called the DCI leader. "Nothing," replied the ghost-prodigy. He shot up to the sky for a brief second, then returned to the ground and is bead walked home. His mind recalled the times he had skateboarded down the streets.

Once again the familiar loneliness swept its feather-soft wing over him, but beneath the soft warmth, there was something _else, _the barren, abandoned feeling, devoid of happiness. He evoked one memory of him dancing to the song Euphoria. Well, that feeling of euphoria was gone now. Glitch thought up a song title that matched him most right now, and came upon a conclusion.

Harder To Breathe, Not Coming Home.

**The next chapter will still be a bit sad, which consists of Glitch's interpretations on the songs, but after that hopefully there's still more pranking up ^.^**

**And, yes, I'm a fan of Maroon 5.**

**I've also finished my one-shot, which is titled 'Halloween Pranking.' If you want just a thousand more words to keep you smiling, go check it out. Soon you'll see the next chapter of this story up anyhow. Hopefully, chapter sixteen won't end up so sad. I don't know why I tend to lean that way all the time. Humor is out of my comfort zone, so I will try hard to make it right. More pranks, of course, and maybe even a bit more playing with Boomy and the time machine. **

**I've always been interested in Boomy somehow. Who's voice is behind the boombox? Rasa's? I mean, like when you do the Break It Down mode? I don't know why, but I love Boomy. Man, I wish I could take him home with me! Yes, Boomy's a **_**he, **_**right? **

**Before I go on with Boomy, I'd like to say that I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and let's all pray that there will be more humor up.**

**Now, last but not least, review if you liked this chapter! It keeps me motivated!**


	16. Chapter 15: Nighttime Musing

**First of all, I'd like to thank my buddy PunkRoseBlitz for the kind review xD Maroon 5 all the way! Ha, hopefully we'll see more action soon :D**

**This story has nailed over 800 views! ****ლ****(****ಠ****益****ಠ****ლ****) More views and reviews! We can do this thing! I thank you all for reading and reviewing, it means a lot to me! **

**- shares digital cookies -**

**Songs used in this chapter: **

**» Harder To Breathe, Maroon 5.**

**» Not Coming Home, Maroon 5.**

**A reminding disclaimer: I don't own Dance Central nor its characters and contents. I don't own the songs either.**

The green-eyes ghost trundled home in complete silence. The moon hung over him, dimmed and lightened as clouds passed by. The prodigy finally made it home. He swallowed, facing the door. The trip home had felt so normal, so different from the past few days he had gone through. He gulped and pushed through the door, once more aware that he was a spirit, torn from a normal life. He flew to his room right away, and settled down with his knees pulled up close to his head. He buried his face in his arms, inhaling. Now he let go of his thoughts, and they floated off like rings of smoke.

_How dare you say that my behavior is unacceptable_

_So condescending unnecessarily critical_

_I have the tendency of getting very physical_

_So watch your step 'cause if I do you'll need a miracle_

A faint smile touched his lips as he remembered the times he had run away with the other dancers speeding up behind him. Of course, he had always been a prankster. The one who pulled tricks on anyone, anytime, anywhere. From throwing popcorn into Mo's ice cream in the middle of the night to skateboarding in broad daylight with Emilia's credit card at hand, he was the master.

_You drain me dry and make me wonder why I'm even here_

_This Double Vision I was seeing is finally clear_

_You want to stay but you know very well I want you gone_

_Not fit to funkin' tread the ground that I'm walking on_

He quietly laughed. Remembering the times he had been so cheeky and mischievous, not to mention a couple more to add to his history of tricks. He played with his fingers, wondering about how he could survive the night.

_When it gets cold outside and you got nobody to love_

_You'll understand what I mean when I say_

_There's no way we're gonna give up_

_And like a little girl cries in the face of a monster that lives in her dreams_

One trick in particular was held close to him. Setting up the holograms, he had spun a fantasy that was entirely different from the term 'Glitch.' Everyone had screamed, and there he was in the control room, giggling off everybody's idiocy. Well, now he planned to do that again. He shivered. A soft tremor racked his body, but disappeared as quickly as it came.

_Is there anyone out there 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe_

_Is there anyone out there 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe_

Suffocation wasn't possible for a ghost anymore; Glitch was sure of that. This was different. But then again, he should just take advantage one more time. It was an enjoyable pastime.

_Does it kill_

_Does it burn_

_Is it painful to learn_

_That it's me that has all the control_

Just as his thoughts switched to this part of the song, Glitch realized that the beginning didn't match him very well. Oh, he did have control, in a way. But when he was placed in a picture where he was a ghost and when he was not, he was as helpless as a three-wheeled skateboard on a highway.

_Does it thrill_

_Does it sting_

_When you feel what I bring_

_And you wish that you had me to hold_

Once again Glitch almost gave up on thinking of this song. Still, a lot had stung him today, and yet he still failed to get the honey from the beehive.

_When you refuse me_

_You confuse me_

_What makes you think I'll let you in again_

_Think again my friend_

_Go on misuse me and abuse me_

_I'll come out stronger in the end_

Now he wished he could come out stronger quicker. Physically, he was stronger as a ghost, but he still missed throwing taunts and sneaky remarks at his friends. After all, the chance to call someone a rainbow-haired nyan-resembling sea urchin stuck on a board at the beach sure wasn't common, and he had missed his shot. Perhaps he should have used the term 'powdery sugar-haired girl' when the hair dryer prank had taken place as well. Alas, that was progress.

_And does it make you sad_

_To find yourself alone_

_And does it make you mad_

_To find that I have grown_

_I'll bet it hurts so bad_

_To see the strength that I have shown_

Briefly, he pictured himself returning to normal. Was it within his reach? It was like tracking a roe through the widest forests of the world with no more than numb skill. He hadn't a clue. Now he wished he had his life back. Before all this, he never knew ghosts even existed. Being thrown into this new world without really caring, that was odd for him. Now he just shrugged.

_When you answer the door pick up the phone_

_You wont find me cause I'm not coming home_

Oh, he'd return, though, that was for sure. How or when, though, he wasn't sure. Now all he could do was hope. That faint light that was a firefly could escape his cold, raw fingers in less than a heartbeat.

_You do not know how much this hurts me_

_To say these things that I don't want to say_

_But have to say them anyway_

_I would do anything to end your suffering_

_But you would rather walk away_

Glitch let a hard, wry smile lighten his face again. This wasn't heartbreak, this was all just... well, it was hard for him to explain. Sometimes he took this seriously, and try hard to comprehend this fast-paced change, but it her times he would play all this as if it were a game.

_And does it make you sad_

_To find yourself alone_

_And does it make you mad_

_To find that I have grown_

_I'll bet it hurts so bad_

_To see the strength that I have shown_

Pain had never touched his heart, at least not until the time he has discovered the fact that it would be an obstacle to become normal once more. It had never resided in him like a ball of ice in his stomach, and it would never do so. Not on his watch. The steady heartbeat that vibrated from the direction of the hospital intensified, then loosed its grip, and slowed to the usual pace with only a handful of thumps a minute.

_When you answer the door pick up the phone_

_You won't find me cause I'm not coming home_

He closed his eyes, murmuring to himself, deciding that, sleep or no sleep, he needed mental rest. For a minute, his enigmatic green eyes snapped open and surveyed the room he was in, but then they drowsily closed, and Glitch traveled through the night, his consciousness hanging by a string.

From tomorrow, he would stay on a prank-a-day basis. Besides, Bodie had not yet realized two of his pranks, which were the megaphone prank and the lifeguard seat prank. Hopefully those pranks would be noticed soon.

_Tomorrow, _he decided. _Strawberry pie prank, tomorrow or never. _

**Well, that took quicker than expected. Filler chapter, I know, but don't you want to wait a bit before we play with the pie?**

**Note that the next chapter might now come up until, I don't know, a couple days after today. If we're all lucky, you'll see chapter sixteen up real soon. There's a celebration coming up soon, so I might have to spend a little bit of time away from writing. I'll try to sneak a chapter in as often as possible, though :)**

**Review if you liked this chapter!**


	17. Chapter 16: Pie Chart Of Pranks

**Whoa, what? I can't believe this story has finally gone to 16 chapters! A quick thanks to Rose for the review, and now behold the sixteenth chapter! **

**Once again, sorry if you found any typos. - bows down in apology -**

His mind clouded, Glitch rolled out of the bed. He rubbed his eyes and stood up, and waited until his senses sharpened and for his misty green eyes to clear. Yawning, he felt quite grateful that he hadn't lost all his human traits. Not so sure that he had slept, he stretched even though he didn't feel too tired. After a bit of dance practice on his own, he walked over to plan his pranks. All throughout his steps, the words 'strawberry pie' crossed his mind.

Thoughts echoed in his head, and the little prankster remembered the pie that Mo had left in the fridge yesterday. This was the perfect way to get Mo framed. He took the pie, then hesitated and left it behind, deciding to use it last. Treading over to the DCI Headquarters would take a long while, so for once, he took flight.

His silent trip ended with a torpedo to the underground, except without the huge explosion. Screeching to a complete stop, he straightened himself up and quickly went for the control room again. Unfortunately, Glitch realized that there were too little people to go around. If he wanted an amazing prank pulled, he needed lots of people to see it happen.

Sighing, he returned home to find out where his prey had gone. First up was Riptide beach. From what he saw, his two pranks had taken place already. The lifeguard's seat had broken planks and wooden pieces scattered around it, and the megaphone was on the sandy ground. Eagerly, the ghost-prodigy explored around the sands, looking for hints of where Riptide had gone. It turned out that they were on their way to Mo's. Bodie had a hand on his ear, visibly because of the megaphone prank. Luckily, he didn't seem hurt by the lifeguard seat prank.

Emilia's eyes were practically on fire; obviously out of anger because of the prank that the 'King of Flash' had pulled. Wanting to see conflict rise, the protégé tailed the two dancers until Bodie finally knocked on Mo's door. The Hi-Def leader let them in, without asking anything. His behaviour, of course, puzzled Riptide. They would have gone straight to the point on the pranks, but after a while they seemingly decoded that it wasn't Mo who had tricked them.

Instead, Bodie pulled out the note Glitch had written. _He kept it? _Glitch was baffled. The blonde set the note in front of Mo. "So, King of Flash?" he asked. Mo turned to study the note closely. "I didn't write this," he pronounced suddenly. "No?" Emilia questioned suspiciously. Mo shook his head. "See this?" His finger indicated a letter on the note. "Here," muttered the African-American while grabbing a scrap of paper that was close to the couch. It read,

_Glitch,_

_Won't be back till 11, busy. Don't freak out like last time. If you want any snacks, I've just restocked the fridge. Don't mess it up._

_Mo_

Glitch remembered the note from when Mo had gone out with his bros Angel, Oblio and Bodie. It also brought an unpleasant memory along with it, when Glitch had panicked when Mo left the kid at home for two hours without notifying the prodigy. Mo showed the Riptide duo the paper, then compared it to the note.

"See?" Mo asked. "That's not how I write the letter D, and this isn't how I write a lowercase G." _Dang it! _swore the ghost in his head. Bodie rolled his eyes. "That ain't prove anything." "Oh?" Mo said sarcastically. "Remember the paint thing at DCI HQ? Did ya think your boy Mo was responsible for that one too?" Emilia shook her head. "I still don't get that. Things are... happening a lot nowadays." she murmured. Both male dancers nodded in response.

Glitch laughed. _And a lot more pranks are coming up, so be ready. _He saw this as the perfect chance to do the pie prank. He pulled one of the notes from Mo's hand and let the scrap of paper drift down until it reached the floor. "I'll get it," offered Bodie, taking one step back and hunching down to get a grip on the paper. At that very moment the pie rocketed into his unsuspecting face.

The lifeguard tried to say "What?" but instead it came out as a puzzled "Waffle?" _Enjoy, _was what was on the protégé's mind when he shoved the strawberry treat into the poor lifeguard's face. Mo burst into laughter, Emilia pulling Bodie up on his feet before starting to giggle herself. When Glitch looked again, she was on the floor laughing her head off.

"You... oh my god, B, you... pfft... ahahaha!" she gasped, kicking out with her feet. Even Mo was having a hard time standing, having himself supporting his entire figure on one hand pressed to the wall, and the other hand wrapped around his stomach. He kept making amused noises that instead sounded like moans of pain to Glitch.

Bodie, infuriated, pushed himself up, clenching and unclenching his hands. Finally, he turned to give Mo a hard punch in the gut, but stopped his hand about three inches from excruciating pain. _Wow, _thought Glitch, _the most favorite dancer known for his friendliness, the complete opposite of those glittery top-o'-the-tower freaks, and he's _this _close to killing my brother. You learn something new every day, Glitch. Let that be a lesson. _

Mo shrank back nervously. Without a word, Bodie curtly directed himself towards Mo's bathroom door, and Emilia shrugged a 'sorry' to Mo. "That wasn't you, was it?" she asked. Mo shook his head, still a bit touched by the fear Bodie had left him in. "Then maybe we should ask DCI. They might know." declared the female Riptide dancer. "Why," Mo began while fumbling for a paper towel, "are you so interested in this?" He wiped the floor where a bit of strawberry jam colored the shiny tiles. Meanwhile, the raven-haired ghost leaned on a wall.

_I need to pull something again later, something big. Something hilarious, awesome and beyond, 'cause this isn't nearly enough. Ha, King of Flash got this on lock! _He thought, and grinned widely.

Emilia tilted her head in direction of where Bodie had gone. "He really wants to know what's been doing all this. I mean, if you got tangled up with a fishing line and nearly hurt yourself, then you fell on to a basketball court covered in glue, then got dumped with feathers and yet more freaking glue, then find rainbow cereal in your towels, then somehow end up on a surfboard more than a couple feet above the ground, then fall off your lifeguard seat, then get yelled at by an unintentionally loud megaphone, and lastly get a pie thrown into your face, wouldn't _you_ go crazy?"

Mo nodded. "True story." He crumpled the paper towel up and threw it into the trash can. "A'ight, I'll try t' find a way to solve these shenanigans." he decided. Glitch sensed a slight indignant feeling gnaw at him. They didn't find any connection between the protégé's accident and all the pranking. _Ah, well. _He nodded, accepting his situation.

_They'll notice. Just wait._

**Sorry if there isn't enough humor in there for you guys, I'm kinda mad at real life right now, even though it's no biggie. As Glitch said, ah, well. **

**So, did you like this chapter? Review your thoughts and I might just update even quicker! **


	18. Chapter 17: Making Predictions

**PunkRoseBlitz: Yep. They'll notice in time, don't worry :)**

**AfricanAmazon: If you mean Mo, then yes, one way or another something baaaaad is gonna happen!**

**sarge1130: I don't know, really, but I guess I directed most of the pranks to Bodie because I don't know much about American lifestyle, so I can't really predict what a rich person like Aubrey or Angel would do. As for Flash4ward, it's pretty much the same. So, out of all crews, I'm more comfortable having a shot at Riptide. I can't agree with you about the yaoi thing, as people write what they want. Still, that's why I use Bodie a lot ^^**

**920 views? Aw, thanks so much, guys! - more digital cookies -**

The two older dancers conversed while Glitch tried to tell himself to be patient. Surely the other dancers would notice him, right? Maybe Rasa would spill the beans once things became tight. As an attempt to keep himself from grabbing a pen and paper and writing everything down, he breathed in and our slowly while thinking of the pranks he still had in store.

Soon after, Bodie walked on to join Mo and Emilia. His face was dry after a bit of scrubbing, but there were still hints of pink jam on his clothes. His hair was cleaned out. He still seemed extremely angry. Glitch leaned on the wall, his eyes slightly narrowed in the same frustration that Bodie felt. The ghost rubbed his hands together, and listened in as the three taller dancers spoke again. "So what now?" Emilia reached for the doorknob. "Are you going to ask for DCI's help? Rasa might have the technology we need. Next time someone sneaks in, we'd be more prepared." She turned the knob and motioned for Bodie and Mo to follow.

"Wait up," Mo called while holding up a hand. "If were going to DCI HQ, we need the uniform. Meet you both at, say, that new food court that just opened up near Harmonix Park? That way we can grab a bit o' lunch easy."

"Sure," agreed Emilia after Bodie have a tiny nod of his head. Riptide departed while Mo closed the door with his right hand, the left one in his pocket. Glitch slipped through the gap in the doorway just as Mo closed the door, so Glitch quickly de-solidified himself before Mo could realize that something was blocking the door. _That was a near thing, _Glitch thought while exhaling in a relieved sigh.

He absently toyed with his fingers while Mo changed quickly. Soon Glitch saw his mentor in the usual black-and-silver striped hoodie and a dark purple tie.

Seeing his brother like this caused Glitch to feel the urge to find his own DCI Agent outfit. In his head snapped the picture of him in the half-tucked purple shirt, a matching streak on his hair, shiny black suspenders, and his black watch on his left wrist. Unable to rid himself of that lacking feeling, Glitch followed Mo to the food court he had talked about.

They met up with Bodie and Emilia, both in their DCI outfits. They were cleaned, no longer with anymore paint on them. Mo ordered his lunch, and asked Riptide, "What about you two?"

Bodie shook his head. "Thanks, but we already ate waiting for you. You took a while." Mo shrugged and paid for his lunch, then ate. Glitch didn't feel any hunger, which both confused and reassured him. Longing for something to do, he busied himself with trying to count the number of people entering and exiting the court.

Once Mo was done, the protégé couldn't help but punch a fist in the air, eager to go out at last. He ran a hand through his slick hair, then followed the three older dancers as they still talked among themselves. The prodigy waited for his ears to catch the word 'Glitch,' amid the snippets of talk, but they still didn't mention his name.

Strongly impatient, Glitch kept waiting for his name to feature, until they finally reached DCI Headquarters. They still didn't say anything about him. When, in turn, they were examined with the scanner, Glitch made sure he was insubstantial, which caused him to float above the floor. Eventually, the trio were let in while Glitch slipped through quickly.

Rasa noticed then come in immediately, and greeted Mo, Bodie and Emilia one by one. He also acknowledged the gist with a quick, slight nod and a blink. Glitch nodded back, and Rasa briskly set his gaze on Mo. "So, what brings you here?" Mo answered in a quieted voice, "Remember that one meeting, with all those paint cans, that one?" At those words from the Hi-Def dancer, Rasa's reply sounded slightly bewildered. "How could I forget? Or, should I say, how could _anyone _forget?" he said with a hint of amusement. "The HQ was a total mess."

Glitch whistled innocently when Rasa threw the ghost-protégé a sideways knowing glance. "I still don't know how you cleared that up so quickly," remarked Bodie. "That was pretty impressive." Glitch thought Bodie would have had some respect for the DCI leader at that time, but probably lost it when he was sent to the wrong era. Thinking that made him snort.

"So, we just want to know if you have a way to find out what's been going on. Remember that paint can with the words 'Get out?' It makes me think something's going on for real, know what I mean?" Bodie raised an eyebrow. He took off his shades and held them with his left hand while he continued to talk. "Do you have anything, like a scanner to help us?"

Glitch felt a pang, but he brushed the emotion off. Rasa wouldn't tell, would he? At the '80s, he had promised not to tell. But if the found out that there was a ghost among them _first, then _learned that the ghost was Glitch? Rasa could flip the plans and pretend he never knew that Glitch was a ghost's in the first place. Or he could just make sure that there was a ghost there. If that happened, and Glitch turned back to normal, he would surely be suspected. Now he actually had mixed feelings about Mo knowing him as a ghost. He knew he was thinking too far, but that didn't help slow his racing mind down.

If Mo knew he was a ghost all along, would things turn for the better or worse? Besides, that was only on his mentor. If the whole of DCI knew, that would create an exploding difference. Or what if they instead thought it was one of those ghosts in movies who were bent only on wreaking havoc on the living? Things could go very wrong. And yet, all that rested on Rasa's decision.

The DCI leader barely glanced at the doubtful prodigy.

"I'll help."

**Want to know what happens next? Review, and favorite and follow if you haven't! Makes my day even after getting through the worst of school ^^**

**By the way, I'd like to ask you guys a question. Out of all the Dance Central FanFictions made, which one is your favorite, and who is your favorite DC writer? Mine? There are too many to list! Just one of them, probably, is Whatchu Gonna Do? by OsnapitzGiGiAri, better known as GlitchAwesomeness. I also have a soft spot for a couple yaoi stories, but not as much as the other stories. **


	19. Chapter 18: Guessing Again

**Finally finished :D**

**PunkRoseBlitz: Thanks for reviewing, and sure! I was looking for a couple good stories to inspire me one way or another. And it's DC3's anniversary? Wow, I never knew that. Ah, well.**

**sarge1130: Yeah, ricecooker2000 is pretty good at fanfics. I do enjoy her work, especially System Defrag. It's a shame that so many Dance Central fanfics had gone to a great point where conflict would have struck, but their authors simply dropped the topics. Speaking of that, I feel like I need to update Euphoric again ^^ Problem is, I'm keeping myself really busy with this one, as a lot more reader are interested in this. Not that I mind, so perhaps Euphoric's sixth chapter might come within these two months. And wow, a chemist? Glad to give you something to read before work. And thanks for the review!**

"I'll help."

Those words slipped from Rasa's mouth, to Glitch's horror. The ghost-protégé turned to give the DCI leader an astonished glare, but Rasa avoided the younger dancer's gaze. "What do you think would work?" Rasa asked, straightening his tie for about the fiftieth time. Emilia let her eyes sweep over the HQ's interior. She shrugged. "Maybe you should do something with the scanners?" Her eyes reflected a slight worry, but beyond that, utter curiosity.

"You mean, for it to capture every single fibre that passed it? Or maybe a heat camera?" Rasa made sure. Emilia nodded, Bodie shrugging. "Okay. You could start with that. Where did you put the can?" he added. That made Rasa falter a bit. "I think Lima put it away somewhere," he muttered vaguely. Glitch thought back to when he had cleaned the HQ up; he had thrown the can into the trash. Well, at least that way everyone had a lesser grip on all the ghost activity. Rasa turned to Glitch to fix a hard stare on the ghost. Glitch rolled his eyes back. "You didn't _really _want to help them, did you?" questioned the ghost while shifting himself into insubstantial mode. The DCI leader broke eye contact, but tipped his head just enough for Glitch to know that the prodigy's secret was still safe.

Mo, seemingly left out of the conversation, cut in with his words of "Well? Where is that 'somewhere' and how soon will it take for us to see it again?" he muttered while fixing his sleeve. Rasa hid his panicked expression. "I'll see to it." His view rapidly darted to meet the ghost's green, stony orbs again. Glitch blinked, long and slow, and with a nod of his head, he made the DCI leader understand that he would do well to relocate the can. If he didn't, he could just make a couple jags in another one, even though he hated using too much energy when he didn't need it. Rasa looked back at Mo and repeated in a more confident voice, "I'll see to it, don't worry."

The trio Mo, Bodie and Emilia were called for by Lima. The female DCI dancer had a couple 'dance crazes' for them. After Dr. Tan had been defeated, most of the crazes had been deciphered. However, a few remained unsolved, so they still needed their members to continue analyzing and decoding those crazes. One of the dancers they had relied on was Glitch, but all the agents had taken part in the disentangling of the sequences. They had started our easy, with The Hustle, The Macarena and The Scream, but now the moves were becoming more and more complex. D-Coy were already assigned to do one.

And so left the three unsuspecting dancers, so Rasa took advantage of their absence to have a quick chat with the ghost. "Don't worry. You don't influence on heat, do you?" he murmured. Glitch, still without a solid frame, backed away a little. "Dunno," he shot back. Rasa chuckled. "Didn't you notice? Ever since the paint incident, I had set up extra cameras. Remember that time I left you with Lima when you cleaned the place up?"

Glitch nodded, remembering the time Rasa had excused himself quickly. He has said that he wanted to go get more cleaning supplies, but he had returned empty-handed, saying he hadn't found anything. Could that have been a lie?

Nodding, the DCI leader continued. "I had gone to check on those cameras. You didn't give a flicker." That surprised Glitch a little. To hold something, he had to be solid, but he still didn't give out heat? Heat would come in waves, from anything, so all Glitch could do was let that remain a mystery. Rasa added, "Besides, you could just make sure you weren't solid every time you come here, right?"

Unsettled, the protégé wished he could disagree. He had grown to like being solid, which took his mind off thing he preferred not to remember. Sometimes he felt normal again, only to be ignored by everyone, reminding him of his situation. Sighing deeply, he nodded in reluctance. Rasa thanked the younger dancer and implied, "Don't play any pranks just yet, at least not here. Got that?" he hissed quietly, holding up a finger.

"Got it."

Glitch left soon after, walking down the streets. Somehow, though, he couldn't forget the fact that he was a ghost. So, to distract himself, he thought of a list of pranks he liked. He had played tricks so many times, he couldn't recall all of them anymore. One of his favorites was hacking into Mo's accounts and doing all sorts of things. He had even set his brother's laptop to do nothing more than display large television bars and huge letters with the words 'Error 404' spread across the screen in black.

On Flash4ward, he usually mixed up Taye's styling gear and just mess with Lil'T's property, and had even placed loads and loads of harmless smoke grenades at their Tee Off venue.

The Glitterati were out of his reach, but Riptide? They were his easiest target. There were tons of things he could pull off at their beach. Again with the smoke grenades. Plus, he had actually replaced their basketball with a huge ball filled with confetti, made out of paper and glue.

Lu$h were occasional for him, but he could never forget his prank of placing fake bugs, centipedes and spiders around Aubrey's yacht. Some of them even had special speakers inside connected to a remote, so he could press them to make the bugs noise around. Aubrey had screamed and banned Hi-Def from their yacht for a month. And Mo didn't thank Glitch for it either.

Speaking of Mo, Glitch and his mentor had often hit each other with their pranks. Mo's number one target was Glitch's good looks; Glitch's main shots were aimed at Mo's property. Rarely would a week go on without Glitch shrieking at the loss of hair gel or Mo yelling about his phone, with its wallpaper display changed to a picture of some random anime character or whatnot, but Dare had called it 'Hatsune Niko' or something like that. Neither had appreciated the other's work.

Glitch had to stop pranking at DCI, but Rasa hadn't stopped him from pulling them anywhere else, right?

**Just so you know, I picked Hatsune Miku randomly ^^ Besides, neither Glitch or Mo would actually care about which character I used. :P they always prank each other anyway. It took me a while to think up the pranks, believe me, but more will still be on the way. **

**Finally done with this chapter! Phew! Took a while, but worth it I guess. Gotta scoot now, see you later, chapter 19 coming up!**

**Would you mind reviewing if you liked/enjoyed this chapter?**


	20. Chapter 19: Ushering The OMG On

**26 reviews? Thanks so much, guys! Forget the digital cookies, here's a huge pie! Just make sure Glitch doesn't fling any of it into your face when you're not looking ^^**

**Update: 27 reviews?! Oh my gosh. - sings and dances to Usher's OMG and tries desperately to get the moves right -**

**And now, review replies:**

**sarge1130: I like to update fast with chapters of around a thousand words, because it's easier for me that way. And you're welcome!**

**PunkRoseBlitz: Thanks for the review, and yeah, I do update fast xD Even though you're taking advantage of your sickness, get better soon :P I'm really looking forward to seeing the next chapter of Dancing Diamond, hehe.**

**AfricanAmazon: Thanks, I'll try and make it even better ^^**

**Lightning speed updating mode: ON/**OFF

**And now, the nineteenth chapter! Enjoy (_ _||) I am so tired right now, too lazy to reread, so my apologies for typos and mistakes. I'm writing this in the middle of school again and God, it's hot here, such a forsaken place T-T**

The ghost flicked a bit of water off his hand.

It was night. And it was raining. The droplets would not have influence on him if he weren't solid, but Glitch took cover anyway beneath a bus stop. The water felt somewhat calming, and they would come off his back if he simply lost solidity. With a reassured sigh, Glitch decided that he would go back to Mo's. Tiredness didn't touch him, but he still moved with a slightly slower pace. Because he didn't want to get drenched, he flew, insubstantial, partly because he didn't want anyone noticing the raindrops bouncing off a surface no one could see. His translucent figure zoomed towards the apartment, no longer seeking misery to bathe him in. He began to enjoy the experience of flight once more, and wanted to think of a prank to play on the older B-Boy.

Safely sheltered, Glitch found his older brother sleeping the night away in his room. Glad to recover his solid self, Glitch took his mp3 player and hooked up a song. Normally, one wouldn't do that in fear of Mo seeing headphones flying on their own, but the Hi-Def leader was a heavy sleeper. Glitch started with rummaging in his stash of prank gear. He took a bottle of maple syrup.

He easily found the phone he was looking for. He simply took off the phone's memory card and left the phone there, hiding the memory card in Glitch's own room. Then he found Mo's laptop and changed the background to some girly anime. He searched for a matching screensaver, and put it on. To add the fun, he added a password to the device, to stump Mo. The older B-Boy wasn't _that _bad at riddles, but it could cause anyone to do a facedesk. He entered the password, _glitchhidef._

He proceeded with filling Mo's soap dispenser with the maple syrup. That would have been enough for one day. And he left a note, too. Somehow, he managed to fire up Mo's printer and create a neatly written note without waking Mo up. The note was embroidered with the words,

_I hope you enjoyed this pranking session. As for the password you need, why don't you pay attention to what's __**not **__there instead of what is? _

_Sincerely, _

_The __**new **__King of Flash _

After he switched the printer off and set everything to look like nothing had been touched. It was easy when he didn't have to erase his fingerprints as if he were some evil criminal... which he was, in a very vicious way. He set the card aside until he would see Mo's reactions.

Done, he decided to spend the night hours outdoors. He didn't have much to do, except simply wait for the sun to rise. He was about to go straight through the walls, but with a jolt he remembered his headphones. _That would've been awkward, _Glitch thought, imagining himself going outside and saying, 'Wait, where are the headphones?' At least they wouldn't yank him in the neck. Boy, was he bored. He absentmindedly remained indoors, choosing a song that was to his taste. Waiting was never really his 'thing,' Mo had always told the protégé. _You got that right, bro, _Glitch thought while rolling his eyes. At least the laptop password would get him somewhere. He didn't know if it was a good thing, but he would get Mo to notice him, whether Rasa liked it or not. Glitch was the ghost, not the DCI leader. Rasa was merely a bridge to connect him from to ghost to mortal world, right? Glitch hoped so. He didn't want to be thought of as wrong.

The song 'OMG' played and Glitch thought of the song's near-impossible choreography. Even though he was a great dancer, he couldn't get 'Moveable Type' right fifty percent of the time. Some of the moves were really difficult to him. _Okay, at this point it's Toe Tapper, _Glitch remembered as the lyrics rolled on. He made the decision to try it out once more, but it was hard. He could fly and still remain solid, but he didn't want to. He wanted to challenge himself. Making sure he kept close to gravity, he tried the move again, frantically moving his feet to the beat. He didn't get the move down correctly. He would have fallen to the ground if he hadn't taken immediate flight. He cursed under his breath and tried again.

"Ugh!" he huffed as he tried again. He was great at the moves such as O's Up, O's Down and OMG Salute, and then came the harder moves. He aced at Give It All Show, and always got Over The Rainbow down flawlessly. Full Package, that was easy. Exhale, relatively.

Trying again and again, he saw a bit of progress. He didn't feel tired, not physically, but mentally he was driven out of his mind as it was. The song began to reach its end again, and Glitch could do the Usher move right, then finished the dance with a sigh. At least a couple hours had passed. He didn't know much, but he guessed he needed a bit of mind rest. He opened the door to his room and unplugged his headphones from his mp3 player and stowed them away, then closed the door again. It all felt normal, which soothed his worrying thoughts. Darkness overcame him and he closed his eyes with a smile. He wouldn't sleep to deeply tonight, so he would be ready to place the card near his brother when the pranks took place.

"Rasa, Bodie, Emilia, T and now Mo. Who else?" he murmured quietly. He planned himself to prank every single dancer. Of course the paint incident didn't count; that had affected everyone! Well, everyone but the Glitterati. Then again, now that Glitch could fly to unimaginable altitudes, he could reach their skyscraper. Glitch could sneak into the Penthaüs with ease. Kerith and Jaryn weren't so close to the DCI as to know who's the prankster and who's not. They wouldn't have a guess. They probably had no idea that Glitch was 'unconscious' either.

But first, he should try pranking everyone that as associated with the DCI.

**Done. At. Last. **

**Finished this at school, which is why I updated earlier than usual. Mind telling me what you thought of this chapter? I did it a bit lazily, mind you. **

**Still, I quite enjoyed making this chapter ^^**

**Review if you liked! **


	21. Chapter 20: Mentors Aren't Playthings

**- double take - OMG! - squee - guys thank you so much for the reviews! - shares smoothies, cakes, cookies, pies, rainbow cereal, and everything you love! -**

**sarge1130: Will try and update Euphoric within a week. Anyway thanks for the review :D Jaryn won't lime what Glitch got in store for her... Speaking of Jaryn, I'm trying to do a song-fic of her and Oblio. And Mo might be a little oblivious in this one fic. **

**AfricanAmazon: Hehe, I picked the moves a bit randomly because there wasn't enough Internet access to YouTube the videos of DC3's OMG ^^ now I want an Xbox more than ever :P**

**PunkRoseBlitz: Impossible it is. After watching the choreo for about ten times I still couldn't insert anything into this head of mine. I think I got three... four stars? And... the Glitterati won't be pleased. I can assure you that. **

**Update: Lengthened the chapter.**

**Enjoy :3**

"Huh." muttered Glitch under his breath. It was almost daylight. Mo was still sleeping. The place was as close as ever to deathly silence. Glitch got up from his bed and smoothed the covers, running his hands across the soft surface. His green eyes swept over his bed, scanning for any dents. Once he was satisfied, he plunged through the wall to find a small prick of light piercing the dim shadows. The sun was beginning to rise, and Mo would wake up soon. In a short while he would discover the pranks and Glitch would see how he would open up his laptop.

While he waited, Glitch stood where he had when he had flung the pie into Bodie's unsuspecting face. That made him chuckle a bit. Scurrying around to make sure the pranks were all in place, Glitch suddenly heard the turn of a knob. He swung his head around to see Mo, who still looked a bit bleary. Glitch smiled, and his iridium-shaded figure slid towards his older brother. He wished he could greet Mo, but the protégé quickly overcame his guilt and recovered his usual, bad-boy spirit. Mo, half-awake, trundled over in direction of the shower. Glitch giggled softly, and waited on the couch as he always did.

The only difference was that he wasn't watching TV with the most innocent expression he could plaster on his face. Usually, then Mo would fling a huge pillow and slam into Glitch's face. Then the two would bicker until one finally admitted defeat. Then the winner would gloat over their short-lived victory because by the next day the cycle would start again. Glitch would pull a prank on Mo, then spend half an hour dodging and skateboarding away from the angry B-Boy. The next morning, Glitch would wake up to a not-so-pleasing prank and end up trying to get back at Mo, with chances of success pitifully low.

Now he was semi-solidified so that he wouldn't sink into the cushions beneath him. Glitch tried vainly not to laugh when Mo came out fuming. The older B-Boy went out back to go get their stock of packed soap. Still muttering curses here and there to himself, Mo slammed the door shut even though he was completely alone. Glitch heard 'genius of a lifeguard' among those words, and with a jolt the ghost-prodigy got the picture. Mo obviously thought Bodie had pulled the trick!

It was logical, as Bodie had spent long moments trying to clean himself after getting strawberry pie shoved into his face. Somehow, every time Glitch recalled Bodie he remembered rainbow iridescent hair. Now Glitch wished he had put some cereal in a bucket hanging over the door again, this time for Mo. However, to Glitch, repeating the same prank over and over again wasn't very clever. Now Glitch waited quietly and soon, Mo came from near the bathroom, newly changed into yet another hoodie and a cap. The Hi-Def leader fixed the cap with a hand and then went for his laptop. As the African-American dance mentor carried it to the couch, Glitch only just managed to jump out of the way as Mo sat down. _That's a near thing, _thought the ghost before he realized once more that he actually _was_ a ghost. He peeked over from behind Mo's shoulder and watched as the laptop turned on.

"What the freaking–?!" was Mo's first reaction when he saw his laptop screen, which had a darkened background image of some anime. It depicted a girl with overly large eyes doing a peace sign with her hand and long hair tied up in a ponytail. Glitch had searched for 'anime wallpaper' and had found tons of pictures, and this was just one example. It took Mo a while to realize that he couldn't access anything.

"What...? Password?" Mo said incredulously. Glitch had typed 'Hints, who needs them?' for the hint, and Mo did what Glitch expected: a facepalm, as there was no desk to rest his forehead on. "Ah, that nyan-headed, rainbow-dashy... drool-over-Emilia _freak._" Mo kept listing more and more insults on Bodie until Glitch wanted to puke. Then he just laughed.

"Rainbow-dashy... pfft..." he burst out laughing right after that, grabbing handfuls of his hair and then wrapping himself in his arms, trying to calm himself down when Mo called Bodie a 'golden retriever with cereal on its head and shorts pulled on,' which wasn't even the worst insult he had. Finally, Mo gave up and decided to call Bodie and 'yell into the hobo's ear... and hope he's on his surfboard when I call!'

Finding the phone was easy. Learning that it had little more than defaulted pictures was not. "So he did this as well. Hello, Riptide," said Mo with a hint of sarcasm. "You mean, 'Hello Hi-Def,' don't you?" asked Glitch even though he knew Mo couldn't hear him. With a chuckle, Glitch watched until Mo quickly turned the doorknob. Now Glitch grabbed the note and let it fall. Mo picked it up and read it. "Now he's stealing my King of Flash title?" he hissed angrily, then added, "Ugh, if Glitch was here he'd hack the know-it-all's Facebook account, break his surfboard into pieces and tape them up, then tell the feather-brain that his nonexistent fans are waiting for him to surf. Man, he'd even put smoke grenades everywhere!" He kept speaking until he was almost yelling pointlessly at the ceiling... which would never answer him anyway.

Glitch felt a slight pang but tried to cover it up. Before anything else could happen, Mo charged out of the door without bothering to guess for his password. _Ooh, somethin' bad's gonna happen! _Glitch zoomed around behind Mo as the older dancer dashed out and was in direction of Riptide. Soon something would happen, and Glitch wouldn't give anything to stop it. He'd make things go crazier! Be it Hi-Def, Flash4ward, Riptide, Lu$h, Ninja, DCI, Glitterati, what remained of M.O.C. or even the backup dancers, they're going to get it! Glitch would be ready to prank everyone, by mishap or mess, he's the one who deserves more of a mention even when everyone thinks he's unaware of the insanity he's going to throw around.

_Go, go, go! _Glitch laughed. Perhaps Bodie would be the one to get a punch instead of Mo. Or maybe Emilia would try her best to defend Bodie, but she had little chance because she was discussing the ghost happenings with Mo when Bodie was cleaning up on himself. At least there was zero percent chance of Rasa ruining anything for the prodigy. With a wide smile on his face, Glitch wanted to see what happens next with a video camera at his side. Well, not all moments could be preserved, but something tells Glitch that the impending goings-on would carve a deep furrow in the minds of all the witnesses. Glitch mentally wrote a note for every single person he would trick.

_Mo: check, Bodie: check, Emilia: not exactly, Taye: impending, T: impending, Angel: I'll screw him up in front of Aubrey! Aubrey: let's just see what happens after Angel messes up. Kichi: impending, Shinju: impending – god, this loading bar's gotta be stuck! Everyone else is impending but Rasa! I have to do something about this. My time as a ghost won't go to waste._

He tailed Mo as the older B-Boy, still smoldering, made his way towards Riptide beach. There was definitely a lot of confrontation coming up.

**Short-ish chapter? Sorry. I'm working on a lot of things, really. Typos? - sings Apologize by One Republic - well, I guess it isn't too late, because I'll fix those mistakes as soon as my hands touch a laptop keyboard again without worrying about homework. - glares at pile of unfinished homework angrily -**

**Review if you liked, because Evanescent is my ultimate priority on FanFiction!**


	22. Chapter 21: A Like Or A Love?

**heyitsme22: You do? Aw, thanks X3 Bodie X Emilia, huh? For romance, I'd usually do one-shots. I already have one in line, so it might take a while, but I'll see what I can do. I've done a Jaryn X Oblio, so hopefully Riptide won't be too hard :)**

**Rose: Hehe, definitely XD**

**And now the twenty-second chapter :3**

Glitch took a leap back in surprise when Mo suddenly yelled Bodie's name at Riptide beach. The blond-haired lifeguard was surfing and did just what Mo had wanted. He fell off the surfboard and was dunked into the water. Emilia, who was also surfing nearby, heard Mo's annoyed call and expertly turned towards Bodie. They had a quick conversation before Bodie swam for his board and, dripping wet, they managed to get to the Hi-Def dancers. Glitch just stood beside Mo with a widening grin on his little face. Little did he know that things would go even crazier than what the ghost expected.

Bodie, just as irritated as Mo way, asked, "What?" in a brief mutter. Emilia tossed Bodie a small rolled-up towel, and Bodie caught it and placed it around his neck. Then the brunette Riptide dancer, after a quick dismissal, left. Glitch waited while it was Mo's turn to show the prankster note. Bodie's face scrunched up in a frown. "That wasn't me." He gave the paper back to Mo. The lifeguard shrugged, but Mo was still convinced on who was guilty. "Really now? Didn't ya remember, you had the chance when you visited last time? When Emilia and I were talking."

Instead of what Glitch had expected, Bodie blushed deeply. The ghost-protégé laughed. Bodie had got it all wrong, but then the blonde shook his head. "Well, it wasn't me," he said decisively. Mo burst out laughing as loud as Glitch had. "It... doesn't matter now... you proved that... you like Emilia, don't you?" asked Mo between giggles, elbowing the blonde. Bodie quickly moved our of the way. "I don't," Bodie said while crossing his arms. But in Glitch's eyes, Bodie looked like he would have said, 'Dang it, dang it!'

Deciding to drop the topic for now, Mo argued, "Then who was it, eh? I didn't let anyone else into my place yesterday, and besides, no one else gotta key to my place but the Li'l G." With that, Mo's hands became fists. "Now tell me what you put in as my password!" he threatened.

Seemingly relieved to have Emilia our of the question but also frustrated that Mo still held to the belief that Bodie was responsible, the lifeguard insisted, "I don't know. It wasn't me."

Mo sighed deeply. "Fine, if I can't pry your mouth open, then... I'll tell Emilia you like her!" he said sneakily. it was immediate that Bodie protested, "All right! It wasn't me who set your password! But I'll help you find who did those pranks!" he pleaded. Mo nodded. "A'ight." he muttered while showing Bodie the note Glitch had printed. "What's _not _there instead of what is... wonder what it means?" murmured the lifeguard. Mo did a facepalm. "I didn't bother trying to find out at first. Other than that, this maniac changed my wallpaper and replaced my soap with maple syrup, plus didn't give me a hint on where my phone memory card."

"Hm." Bodie rubbed his chin. "Something that isn't there... have you lost anything recently? Maybe this guy's pulling your leg," he suggested. "Ugh," Mo replied in a grunt, "I'm not sure. The only big difference that's happened lately was Gli..." he faltered. "Actually, it's nothing, really," said Mo, swallowing. He was obviously trying to keep the protégé out of his mind. "Unlike you," he pointed at Bodie in a sneaky voice, "who just proved your feelings for Emilia."

"Cut it out," Bodie coughed. Mo chuckled. "Okay!" Meanwhile, Glitch started laughing as well. "Bodie likes Emilia, Bodie likes Emilia," both Hi-Def members cheered in a teasing, sing-song voice. Bodie grumbled. "All right... now why don't you try Glitch or something? It _is _the biggest difference that's occurred lately, right?" he spoke quickly, trying to change the subject. Mo frowned. "Okay..." he said, dropping the topic of Emilia. Deciding to try the password Bodie had suggested, Mo took his leave.

Glitch sighed. Not much had happened just yet. But then, Bodie turned out to like Emilia after all. Perhaps Glitch could use that against the Riptide dancer... Maybe, with Mo's laptop, Glitch could chat anonymously with Bodie and tell him to do all sorts of things! Of course, now that Mo knew, word would definitely go around the other dancers. Glitch imagined Mo, Oblio, Angel, MacCoy, and the other dancers sneaking a comment in Bodie's ear whenever he glanced at Emilia. Even Rasa would begin to nag at the poor blonde.

Mo made his way home, Glitch tagging along. The ghost walked a bit behind his mentor, eyes set down on his shoes. They made it back home and Mo briskly went for his laptop, turning it on and then trying the password 'glitch' to find failure. After a but of brain racking, Mo tried all sorts of possibilities, including 'Glitch' and '6l1tch' until he finally tried 'glitchhidef' and unlocked his laptop.

Mo obviously wondered why whoever set this on him as so intent on making him notice Glitch. But Mo just shrugged the thought off, much to Glitch's frustration. With a long-overdue sigh the invisible protégé watched as Mo walked to their own personal dance practice room. Glitch saw the chance to nag at Bodie. Glitch had tons of accounts, being your better-than-average pro hacker, and he chose one of his lesser ones. He thought of something interesting to post. Or he could just hack Bodie's account and make him look bad, but he'd done that before.

Now he thought up an interesting idea to post. It would definitely have Bodie's and Emilia's names written all over the paragraphs. Setting to work, Glitch hummed to the music that reached him from within Mo's dance practice room.

The prodigy typed his post title: _Bodie Likes Emilia? _

**Sorry for delayed action guys, had to study T-T**


	23. Chapter 22: Lifeguard's Crush

**PunkRoseBlitz: They're cute, aren't they? Unfortunately, I think the action can be delayed waaaaaay too long at this rate; maybe until next Saturday - sob -**

**AfricanAmazon: Maybe he will ;)**

Glitch laughed. Poor, poor Bodie. Ever since word had gone around about his crush on Emilia, he's been having the worst days of his life. Today was no exception for the heart-pounding blond lifeguard.

Being one of those days when Rasa and Lima invited them to a party just for fun and competition, the crews were called over to the DCI Headquarters again. There was a reward for the winning crew, which included cash. Even though Hi-Def was left out of the competition due to a lack of dancers, Mo still attended, which somehow led Glitch to making sure he didn't mess the event up... not when they were still in DCI. At least the protégé could enjoy and watch.

It was now turn for Lu$h to go against Riptide. After an exhausting dance battle between Angel and Bodie, it was Aubrey and Emilia's turn. Unfortunately for Bodie, Angel caught him looking at Emilia with a smile. The Latino flashed a grin at Bodie and said, "You find that _chica _interesting, don't you, _amigo_?" which led to Bodie's face turning redder than a tomato in harvesting season. "I do not," the lifeguard-dancer growled though gritted teeth. Meanwhile, Glitch imagined Angel himself, always saying _'mi amor' _and _'chica hermosa' _to Miss Aubrey continuously without success of winning her heart.

The two male dancers, both in their DCI outfits, still talked. Angel was obviously winning their game of words, Bodie trying harder and harder not to blush. Soon, Rasa came by and kept saying the same things. Glitch's post had worked. A couple days ago, Lil'T had been the first to read the article, and showed it to Taye, who shared it to Mo. And everyone knew how Mo always let word go around. Even though the older B-Boy had kept it to himself at first, when he learned that others had known about it too, he decided to spill the beans.

Not long afterwards, the news reached the ears of Angel, Oblio, Dare and MacCoy. And when Dare gossips, everyone hears. Rasa and Lima were well aware of what their agents spoke of during breaks, and boy, were they eager to let more of their dancers know.

"So what do you think of her, Bodie?" Rasa nagged, jerking his head to Emilia. The Riptide dancer was dancing to Whip It by Nicki Minaj, and she did the moves Jazz Square Claps, Rodeo and Cross Front. Bodie stammered, "I... well, she's a good dancer as well as dance partner, and–"

"And she's just _so _perfect for you," interrupted Taye from behind, catching everyone by surprise. Bodie pushed his shades back with one finger and cleared his throat loudly. His expression, though hidden by the dark lenses, said 'Please get out of here, please get out of here...' which made Glitch have a hard time trying to erase the wide smile from his face. Rasa chuckled, seeing that even the prodigy had a hard time stopping his laughter. Glitch nodded.

Emilia froze in her finishing move. Then she did a couple impressive signature moves for her outro. At that moment, Bodie couldn't help but look at his dance partner again, and Rasa punched the Riptide lifeguard's shoulder. "Cut it out," Bodie said irritably again. Then Oblio came along and kicked the blonde's ankle. "Come now, just admit it, or I'll tell her myself," offered the bluenette with quite the sneaky grin. Bodie sniffed.

The event would stretch long into the night, and Aubrey had even offered an after-party at her yacht. Which meant long, long torture for the blonde. And a chance for Glitch to pull a prank at Aubrey and Aubrey alone. After all, there were only a few chances to trick the diva, and with being a ghost, Glitch had the upper hand.

Glitch watched in silence as Rasa and Lima still spoke about the two dancers again. It was a wonder how Emilia herself didn't know about Bodie's crush on her. Emilia and Aubrey left from the dance floor, both anxiously waiting to see who got the better score and could qualify to the next round. This dance battle was a huge knockout for all crews, but luckily the party crashers, the Glitterati, hadn't been around. Glitch, personally, hated them, but he had the chance to get back at them anyway. He couldn't wait to prank on the two top-of-the-huge-skyscraper dwellers.

Finally, Mo got tired of disturbing Bodie and turned to another corner of the Headquarters. Glitch, still used to following his mentor around, had a hard time staying behind. Instead, the dance apprentice came after Rasa and said, "Just so you know, I didn't spread the word around until Bodie confirmed it himself," murmuring in a smug voice. He laid back while Rasa simply asked the prodigy to rephrase his words. "I said it," repeated Glitch, "I spread the word once Bodie himself proved his liking to Emilia."

Rasa did a double take. "How did you 'spread the word' as you said?" he questioned. Glitch rolled his eyes, pulling the 'Spread The Word' move in the song Scream by Usher. "Duh, Internet," he muttered. Rasa shrugged. "'Duh?' How was I supposed to guess?" he protested silently. He fixed his tie while Glitch rolled his eyes for about the fifteenth time that night.

The ghost-kid snickered. "It's not like mah big bro Mo always has his eyes set on his laptop. B'sides, he's a heavy sleeper. I sneak onto his laptop a lot," he explained, bright-eyed to share his pride. Rasa sighed and did an exaggerated facepalm. "Boy, you need some training for discipline." Even though his hand covered most of his face, Rasa's eyes showed a slight amusement to Glitch.

His words made Glitch scoff loudly. "Ha. Yeah, right." Floating above the floor leisurely, he watched as Riptide was nominated as a qualifier, while Lu$h became prone to elimination along with the Ninja Crew. Aubrey didn't look pleased, and of course blamed it all on undeserving Angel. Boomy, with music bouncing off 'his' speakers, showed five golden stars. Emilia just have done a good job. A chance for everyone to get to Bodie again.

When Glitch whipped his head around, he couldn't find the blonde until his hair color caught his eye; Bodie was purposefully hiding near the corners. When Emilia came over to greet him, more than a few agents and dancers giggled. Lima hid her smile behind her semi see-through tablet device. Mo, his face half-hidden under the black-and-silver striped hoodie, had a grin spread across his face. Lil'T and Taye whispered to each other about the undisputed couple. Even Oblio turned his head around, quite the glow in his brown eyes. Somehow, Aubrey looked to he a bit touched by the scene too. Glitch rambled loudly, "D'aww, that's so cute," which Rasa repeated under his breath. The translucent ghost, or 'Nanobyte,' as Mo had grown fond of calling him, maintained his cheerful façade while everyone's eyes were still focused on Emilia.

Emilia didn't notice anything just yet, but it was suspected that she liked the blonde. Would something bloom between them? Bodie was sweating, and Glitch imagined the blonde's heart pumping out of his rib cage.

It could be a chance for the protégé to ruin a date... he could taste sweet and spices, even bitterness. Whilst he was intent on wreaking havoc on everyone, perhaps he might just change his focus on these two instead.

_Nah, _Glitch shook his head. _Maybe later. I need to get to the Glitterati begging for mercy before I do anything about _them. _Hopefully I'll get Jaryn to her knees and Kerith hanging on the side of his skyscraper before I replace Bodie's bouquet of roses with a clump of weeds._

Emilia smiled and broke eye contact with a nervous Bodie. At that mention everyone else turned their heads away, some trying to look as innocent as possible, as if nothing had happened. Except for Lil'T, that was. She burst out laughing, until Taye finally managed to keep her sister from wrecking the moment. While the younger of the Flash4ward dancers tried to calm her rapid breathing down, some of the agents still took their chances to look at Emilia and then back at Bodie. Glitch, bored, flew out of the DCI HQ.

In search of a prank to play on Lu$h. "L.U.S.H... Loser's Unfortunate Ship Hoard, I guess, for tonight. They'll regret stepping foot on that yacht tonight. Everyone's going to love what they see, except for the crew themselves." The ghost crossed his arms and leaned on the back of a wall. In front of him was the yacht. It floated in the moonlit water, the waves creating small noises.

A perfect place for a perfect little prank, pulled by the King of Flash.

**Review or the King of Flash won't like how things turn out :P**


	24. Chapter 23: Around The Battlefield

**PunkRoseBlitz: I'll try and out him more in the story, hopefully without him being OOC. Thanks for reviewing by the way :D**

**heyitsme22: I try my best :)**

"And now, put your hands together for the Lu$h Crew! Aubrey and Angel will be going against Kichi and Shinju in the knockout battle!"

Claps erupted and echoed as Aubrey entered the center of attention. Angel followed behind her, bringing up the rear as a backup dancer along with Shinju. Kichi took up the front, to the left of the redhead Lu$h dancer. They were ready, with Boomy at their heels, and they were ready to give what they got. Glitch, who leaned on a wall close to Rasa, asked, "Who d'ya think's gonna win?" which Rasa replied to with, "Probably Lu$h."

_Precisely, _thought the ghost. Rasa looked at him. "Why ask?" The DCI leader watched intently as the music began. Glitch twisted his back to face Rasa and chuckled slyly. "Oh, just wondering," he said before turning his back in a clear dismissal. While the ghost watched the battle, Rasa's eyes were trained on the protégé's every single movement suspiciously. Glitch, who noticed the burning gaze, slithered away out of sight. He circled the group of dancers to see Rasa scratching his head in wonder. For once, Glitch was only too glad that he was speedy and hard to track down in such a huge crowd.

Suddenly the watching dancers' attention was trained on the competitors again. It was time for freestyle, which would be the most decisive session of the dance. Instead of just Aubrey and Kichi up front, Angel and Shinju shifted their positions until all four dancers stood in a row. The thing was they had to do a dance that actually had interaction between the two halves of a crew, as they barely glanced at each other when they were in the more structured form of dance. They would be judged for creativity and innovation, as well as keeping up with the music. They had to stay in sync.

Aubrey was one of the dancers who actually had a lot of sass, and it showed whenever she danced. She and Angel thought quite alike, in which case they could coordinate each other through plain eye contact. Sometimes they didn't even have to do that, and let the moves flow on their own. The redhead was more of the lead dancer; Angel was like the omega to her alpha.

Kichi and Shinju, however, were more of the mind-alike type. They mirrored each other more often, sometimes with one circling the other. At one point Shinju would be the main dancer, then they would switch places and the eye would automatically watch Kichi instead. Their dance was still following the beat, and to Glitch it was hard to decide the winner. Then again, he wasn't their judge.

Boomy, now in the center of the action, kept shaking to the beat. His star power had already reached four stars and was going for the fifth. The boombox's golden color stood out against the purple that was reflected in the shiny black floor.

Glitch, bored with the lack of action, eventually grew tired of watching, and decided to work on his little prank. Just managing to toss a glance to make sure Rasa was distracted, he sped out and blasted from the underground. He reached the yacht in only a couple minutes. It rocked up and down gently, which somehow reassured Glitch even though he couldn't get a stomachache anymore. He saved time by coming in through the top of the fancy yacht to find something to do.

Knowing that no one would be on board just yet, he sneaked into one room in particular. He still couldn't believe how rich the posh girl was. He found a couple of Aubrey's devices such as her laptop and her iPad. Aubrey must have visited the place earlier. So Glitch did what he had done to Mo, and locked both devices, this time with 'lu$histerrible' as his password. Still, as he had pulled the prank before, this would not be enough. He, being lucky, found some double tape, and put it to good use by sticking it under Aubrey's iPad cover. Then he used it and stuck it all over her pillows.

Noticing a couple cans of soda and even a couple drinks Glitch knew he wouldn't have been allowed to take, Glitch chose to add in some cayenne pepper. How did he find cayenne paper? He didn't. He actually spent a long time getting back home to grab the gear. Then he made use of his ghost strength and dragged the bed mattress onto the floor. Then he piled the sticky pillows on top of the mattress.

He glanced around. This was the room where, after a good deal of dancing, battling, and rivalry, the crews would gather, mostly the top five: Lu$h, Flash4ward, Hi-Def, D-Coy, and Riptide. Last time, the girls had been playing a bit of truth or dare and watched some TV while the boys were left out, having to stay at the dancing platform. In the end, Glitch had been the joker, pulling more and more tricks. Somehow, he managed to bring along the worst weapons Mo could dread for his brother to carry. One could simply say that the ending to that event had not been to pleasing.

So what about this one? Hopefully not.

Glitch, fast as a blast of rapid fire, rocketed back to Headquarters. He stopped flying and gingerly set himself down, and then searched for Rasa. The older dancer was talking to Bodie... with the snarky expression that the lifeguard just couldn't seem to avoid. Glitch decided to hear their conversation. As he had expected, the word 'Emilia' rang in his ears immediately. Mo appeared from behind and shoved the Riptide blonde, and Taye inserted a few remarks while Lil'T made those points crystal clear. Bodie had only one emotion written all over his face: horror. Glitch couldn't see his eyes very well, but everyone could guess that they would only put more emphasis into Bodie's discomfort.

Oblio, who had been standing alone, being the solitary dancer as he was, tossed his head back to reveal his brown eyes intent on Bodie. Finally, the bluenette joined the group with a smirk. He walked a bit hesitantly at first, but when they welcomed him to torture Bodie with them, he started throwing the most poetic yet humorous sentences that could have driven Bodie mad.

Emilia was standing a little way away with Lima, Dare and MacCoy. After a while the Ukrainian DJ broke away from them and came along to tease Bodie as well. Now Glitch wished someone could hear him. He would have nagged at Bodie even more strongly. Then again, he would have more fun once they got to the yacht anyway.

So the 'Apprentice of Flash' waited while he watched the competition between Lu$h and Ninja.

**Review if you liked :D Tell me who you think should win the battle.**


	25. Chapter 24: Arising Tension

Glitch watched as Kichi, Shinju, Aubrey and Angel exited the dance floor, each with a different and unique outro. The eliminated crew would be announced soon, and the luckier of the two crews would remain in the competition.

After a heart-pounding silence spread across the dancers, it was finally announced who the winner of this round was. "Both crews did an amazing job here today. Unfortunately, only one can remain in the competition. Give it up to... Lu$h!"

Claps, cheers, yells, congratulations, whoops, hollers, and screams echoed through the underground HQ. One voice yelled in particular, "Angel, I love you!" When Glitch looked around to find the source of the call. Angel didn't seem to care anyway.

The ninjas would be the first to be eliminated in the huge battle; more knockout rounds were on the way.

Snatches of the previous knockout dance battle flashed in Glitch's memory. He and Mo had reached third place; Flash4ward were second and Riptide had happily won. Hi-Def had climbed to the top during the two battles before that. The events were held without warning, sometimes two occurring within three months, and sometimes five months could go on without a single knockout dance battle. Mo didn't seem to mind stepping out of this battle, as Hi-Def were one of the crews with a successful record in the past dance battles. Even before DCI, the crews had always organized the battles, but now that Rasa and Lima were here, things became easier to take care of.

Now Rasa was still standing in the crowd that clambered around Bodie. Emilia, however, was still talking to Dare. The pink-haired D-Coy dancer had shared a glance with MacCoy, and the DJ had mentally commanded for Dare to keep Emilia distracted while Bodie was mercilessly tossed and thrown around with their teasing. Finally, a tired Angel and an exhilarated Shinju joined the growing group while Aubrey walked towards the group of two female dancers. Kichi followed the redhead.

Emilia scrutinized the people around Bodie. "Do you think we should join them?" She indicated the dancers. "Those cheaplings? They're probably talking about how great I was, don't you think?" Aubrey lied smoothly, and yet she still showed her sassy attitude as she did. Kichi, who also knew about the rift of love in Riptide, visibly agreed with Aubrey, and they kept Emilia a good distance from Bodie. Dare helped keep the Riptide brunette well away from learning about Bodie having a crush on her. Glitch nodded even though no one but Rasa could see him. Besides, the DCI leader was too engrossed in his pestering to notice the prodigy.

Because of that, Glitch gained some speed and crashed into Rasa's sight. The DCI leader, impressively, managed not to show any shock or surprise. Somehow, he managed to simply dismiss the ghost with a slight nod. Not taking that for an answer, Glitch protested loudly, which proved to bug Rasa a bit. In the end, the DCI dancer acknowledged Glitch by silently mouthing, "Fine."

Pleased to have gained at least a bit of attention, Glitch said, "So who's going to battle next?" and pointed to the empty battling zone. 'The Warzone,' as Glitch liked to call it. Both he and Mo had grown fond of the name, and soon all of the dancers began referring to the spot with that name. It looked as of none of the dancers were actually aware that a battle was going on. They were all far too busy with Bodie. At least it was a good thing to the blond lifeguard that Riptide wouldn't be on the dance floor again for at least ten minutes, as that was the duration of a battle. Rasa answered Glitch's question. "D-Coy versus Flash4ward, and then DCI on Riptide. Don't you _dare _try to mess it up for me and Lima."

"Yeah," Glitch snorted, "like I'd do that. Last time I saw, the Glitch never disturbed anyone in a knockout dance battle." He crossed his arms. Rasa's eyes softened, but he didn't exactly apologize when he said, "It's hard to remember that when you've pranked a lot lately. And without getting caught, too."

At hearing Rasa's words, Glitch's eyes glowed. "Is that supposed to be a praise? 'Cause if it is I'll take it for granted." His eyes twinkled mischievously. Rasa rolled his eyes and turned his back on Glitch. Being one who hated getting ignored, Glitch playfully tweaked a bit with Rasa's hair. Rasa swiftly stepped to one side and clear from the protégé's reach. Growing bored, Glitch watched the conversation that Bodie was losing at.

"Come on," MacCoy called suddenly, shouldering his way out of the group and snatching Dare's arm. "Wha–" Dare never got to finish whatever sentence she had uttered as her dance partner pulled her away. He dragged her all the way back to Rasa and proclaimed, "We're ready. And tell Flash4ward to bring it on!" he exclaimed in a challenging, confident manner.

Rasa nodded and directed them to The Warzone. Then he gestured to Lima, who had been watching and stood closer to Taye than Rasa was. Lima quickly notified the oldest of the two Flash4ward dancers. Lil'T, listening in, nodded and did a couple dance moves to show her readiness. Despite having to face older – and taller, Glitch thought uncomfortably – rivals, she didn't look fazed. Then again, nothing could faze a girl like T.

"And now, we've got D-Coy in the ring, who will be going up against Flash4ward!"

Some of the dancers began to cheer. Emilia rushed up to Lil'T's side and gave her a pat on the back. "Knock 'em dead," she advised fiercely, to which both Taye and Lil'T gave thumbs-up to. The other dancers who were standing around Bodie rapidly backed away as if none of them had ever spoken to Bodie. That left the blonde surprised.

Boomy began to thump. The sound was like a heartbeat in Glitch's ears. For a brief moment, just a few seconds, really, Glitch felt the steady rhythm of his own pulse. Then his vision shifted and blurred, and the contact with his true self was reduced to the normal, thin link. A bit tipped off by the odd experience, Glitch shook his head and focused on watching the battle and trying not to think up pranking strategies. He had never intruded in a knockout dance battle and would never do such a thing. These battles were different from the usual rivalry. Ruining the event for everyone else just didn't seem right. Besides, he would get into more trouble than usual if he did anything.

Would Flash4ward win? Or D-Coy?

**One word: Review :P**

**If you liked, that is. **


	26. Chapter 25: Let The Music Play

Glitch knew that both Dare and MacCoy would be intent on winning, but so were Taye and Lil'T. It took a while before the music started and the buzz of conversation lessened and eyes began to watch the dancers. The song was Let The Music Play by Shannon – an old song from the '80s that Glitch and Mo specialized at. The moves were hard, difficult even. Glitch had a hard time mastering them, so Lil'T had probably experienced the same problems as he had. MacCoy in particular liked the song, so that gave D-Coy an advantage.

This time, Flash4ward stood on the right side of The Warzone while D-Coy were on the left. Glitch would put his bets on Dare and MacCoy. They knew the dance well enough. Then again, Flash4ward were pretty good too. Lil'T and MacCoy stood up front while Taye and Dare were in the back. They began with Point 'em Out, but the applause resonated noisily when they got to Groove Snaps. Still, the real challenge began when the move Scruff & Step took place, which was also when the lyrics started. After that their legs went crazy, especially with the moves Robo Lock and Locker/Clement.

As Glitch watched, it was clear that D-Coy had the upper hand. They moved with more depth, more passion, it seemed. The dancers did Grapevine. After a while, it was time for freestyle again, one of the factors of a competition that could easily turn the tables. Glitch remembered a time when his breakdancing with Mo had partially been the thing that led him to victory.

On D-Coy, Dare shuffled forward and immediately turned to face MacCoy. The pink-haired Japanese did a locking move and then leaped just behind MacCoy. She twisted her arms and hands, but Glitch couldn't describe what he saw because her arm warmers made things slightly difficult to see. MacCoy did a speedy jump backwards and then shifted, so that he and Dare were back-to-back. They did the move Got Soul, then spun around, clapped once, and mirrored each other doing a move Glitch couldn't recall.

Meanwhile, Flash4ward were doing a good job as well. Taye, unlike Dare, moved with every beat, taking a slick hop three times each. Lil'T jabbed with an elbow in the air, then did Clement. Both of them scruffed the floor with their feet, eventually backing away from each other, then walked forward while doing the move Dice.

Rasa was watching both crews. Glitch, also moving with the beat, made his way to the DCI leader. "Who d'ya think got this one?" Glitch had his eyes fixed on Flash4ward as he asked the question. Rasa shrugged. "They're both doing well for an '80s song that _you _took long to master," he said pleasantly. Glitch grumbled. "It wasn't my fault that time travel's so rough," he muttered under his breath.

The older dancer just raised an eyebrow at him, so the B-Boy pouted, "And it's not fair that 'cha got all the those cool songs while I'm practicin' those trifles." To the protégé, it was true. Rasa's songs included Usher's, one of Glitch's favorite artists. The one song Glitch didn't like and would have left for Rasa was Starships. Nicki Minaj, really? Upon hearing those words, Rasa only smirked. "Fine, then, I'll find you a song you'll like sometime."

Unconvinced, Glitch merely shoved his hands into his pockets. "Empty promises," he said teasingly. "Why don't 'cha just, y'know hit Bodie hard again?" he suggested, eager to see Bodie's terrified face again. Rasa shook his head, and carefully whispered, "I don't think it's the right time for that."

Turning to see the lifeguard, Glitch had a hard time locating Riptide among the huge crowds. Cursing himself for being short, he arose and, from above, easily found Bodie due to his contrasting blond hair. To his dismay, Emilia was there too. Angel stood a couple steps away, and the wistful expression on his face showed Glitch that the Latino himself wanted to harass Bodie further.

Bodie himself looked relieved. His conversation with Emilia was only about dance techniques – probably what they would be doing in their freestyle session. Emilia mentioned a couple scenarios, but Bodie turned them down until they came upon one that they both agreed with. Glitch couldn't hear much of the conversation, except for when Emilia punched her fist in the air and said, "Perfect!"

Glitch sighed and instead looked for Mo. The oldest of the two Hi-Def dancers was easily distinguished. His hoodie caught Glitch's eye, and the prodigy briskly flew to his side. Mo was standing close to one of DCI's agents, but they didn't speak to each other. Mo's eyes were focused on the dancers. The time for freestyle had run out, and Dare, MacCoy, Taye and Lil'T were doing the last moves. Shoulder Pep, Running Man, and Step Out & Clap. Then came the finishing move, and once more every dancer began to clap and cheer.

Each dancer did a different outro. Dare showed off her outfit, snapping her fingers. MacCoy did an impressive kick similar to the Kicking Falcon move, while Taye and Lil'T walked like divas, but each in a different way. Some sort of spirit kindled between the sisters, and they exited. "Kudos to whoever wins," Mo said, greeting the dancers after they left The Warzone. "That was pretty tight. And, speaking for Glitch, 'You guys got a cheat code or something?' He'd be impressed too." Mo let the last words roll a bit heavily, but he smiled as he spoke. Glitch hoped his 'absence' wouldn't let any more people down.

Glitch sped back to Rasa, and once more the DCI dancer gave Glitch a supporting grin. Mentally thanking Rasa, Glitch clasped his hands behind his back and waited while everyone surrounded the dancers who had just battled. Even Bodie and Emilia. "That was fierce!" Bodie roared. "Right, Em?" he amended with a smile. Emilia pushed Bodie away fondly. "B's right, that was something you guys got there," she added. Oblio, who still separated himself a hit from the crowd, murmured, "Aw..." just loud enough for Angel and Glitch to hear. The Latino elbowed Oblio. "_Si,_" he agreed while Glitch gasped after a short burst of laughter.

Rasa and Lima joined the happy group. "That, that right there, was a true DCI performance," praised Rasa. Lima nodded. "You both did well. And I quite enjoyed the freestyle you pulled off there, T." She chuckled softly as the youngest dancer in the round beamed widely. "Thanks!" she exclaimed.

And so the winner was announced. "The qualifier for this round is..."

**Sorry yet again for delayed action, guys :p**

**Review if you're up to see who wins, plus a Riptide v.s. DCI chapter! **


	27. Chapter 26: DJ Got Him Fallin' For Her

"Flash4ward! Give it up to Taye and Lil'T!"

Glitch was a bit taken aback and baffled by the judges' choice, but it was decided. But that didn't mean D-Coy would be out of the competition just yet. Now they would have to go to a knockout round against either Riptide or DCI.

MacCoy slapped his knee in a slight frustration and hissed, "Dang!" with his voice almost completely inaudible; Glitch only heard it because he stood close to the Ukrainian DJ. Dare also looked slightly disappointed, but D-Coy still had a second chance. It was clear that neither MacCoy nor Dare would be willing to lose it.

On the other hand, Lil'T did some sort of... 'victory dance,' as Glitch would call it. Taye, chuckling, pulled her sister away. Then the older Flash4ward dancer shook hands with both D-Coy dancers. "Fair play was fair play," she said.

Dare nodded. She straightened one of her arm warmers and flashed a grin. MacCoy put a hand on his dance partner's shoulder and smiled charmingly. Dare brushed the hand off self-consciously and playfully shoved him away. "D'aww..." Glitch began gushing. He wondered whether it was contagious, because soon everyone else began to say the same thing, even Rasa and Lima. The D-Coy dancers tried to look and act as if nothing had happened between them.

The attention quickly shifted to Bodie and Emilia. "We're ready," said the Riptide brunette. Her eyes shone in a challenging manner. "Bring it on!" she exclaimed while performing a high kick. That earned her a moment of applause from nearby watchers.

Rasa nodded slowly. "Uh-huh..." he murmured slowly, as if he was considering things. "Well, I thought you were supposed to respect your superiors," he pronounced. Emilia replied with, "Can't we just skip to the part when you lose and we act nice about it?" she bashed in a tough voice, holding up a fist as if she wanted to punch someone.

Glitch, floating from above, kept his promise not to mess things up. He stood up front like he usually did. He hated being short sometimes. Somehow he found himself back next to his mentor again. Mo watched the battlers-to-be with interest. Rasa stood in the front next to Bodie while Lima and Emilia were in the back. It made sense, as they seemed to be the ones best for the song they were dancing to. It was DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love by Usher.

From the beginning Glitch couldn't tell who was better. They started with Blades and Arm Twist. The ghost-kid listened as the lyrics played, and grinned. This song would have been perfect for Bodie and Emilia. He hummed along as the lyrics went, _Yeah, baby tonight, the DJ got us fallin' in love again... _

Glitch wished he could nag Bodie after the dance. Then again, Rasa, Lima, Dare, MacCoy, Oblio, Angel, Aubrey, Taye, Lil'T, Mo, and all the other dancers would have things covered. The battlers did Club Walker. Somehow, the entire HQ's light turned off for about a heartbeat before new, brighter lights took place. It often happened, but Glitch suspected that Rasa had personally programmed the computers to only do it on his performance and no one else's. The prodigy decided that he would tweak the lights to work during each battle when he had the time.

Kick Drop & Clap took place, and Glitch heard admiring gasps throughout the HQ. Someone yelled, "Yeah!" and clapped, and soon everyone else followed suit. Whistles sounded out and Glitch watched as it was time again for freestyle.

_Thump, thump, thump. _Boomy bounced every time a move was completed well. And by the looks of it, every move was taken care of flawlessly.

Riptide were doing an overly impressive dance. Bodie did an almost impossibly fast jump and Emilia darted close to him, then they did a fast version of the move Trickster. They moved so fast that Glitch wondered how they could keep it up – their moves looked almost inhuman. And then,Glitch's jaw dropped open when Bodie did a backflip, with a large gap underneath him that Emilia somersaulted though. _Woah! _thought Glitch.

Boomy quickly filled up to the third-and-a-half star mark.

Rasa took a sideways glance at their rivals and smiled at Lima. She returned his gaze and they swapped places, and Rasa did Moveable Type from the song OMG, which was impressive. He topped that move up with more moves from the same song, such as Berserk, but then continued with a new sequence Glitch had never seen before. Lima wasn't left out, doing moves just as difficult. They did moves that, in Glitch's opinion, were more complicated than even Toe Tapper.

The boombox Boomy was now at four stars.

Once the session for freestyle was ended, all four dances fell into structure at the same time, harmonizing with the beat. Glitch watched as they danced, until they all did the finishing move. Then Glitch thought he heard a short circuit as the lights burst and went back to normal, and then all the dancers did an outro as they always did.

Boomy was filled to the fifth star, and then, with a thump, the stars became golden.

Bored, the protégé wished that they would hurry up with their knockout battles and come to Aubrey's yacht. His pranks were waiting, and they wouldn't be much fun without anyone falling into their trap. "Huh," muttered Glitch when Rasa, with an arrogant smirk, approached Mo, even though his eyes darted sideways towards the invisible prodigy.

Bodie and Emilia high-fived, then rejoined the group. Glitch, rolling his eyes at Rasa, darted off to listen in. With a shake of his head and an almost inaudible murmur of "The little cheek," Rasa followed.

The ghost turned back and chuffed before he stumbled towards the older dancers – well, all of the dancers were older than him but T – and watched as some of the crews complimented Riptide's flawless run. Their freestyle was also something for the judges to consider. Who would take the safe seat?

Glitch looked at Rasa mischievously. "Now ya gotta be wishin' ya could do a flip in that fancy suit o' yours, eh?" he dogged. Rasa did a tiny shrug, which made Glitch giggle a bit. Soon the winner would be announced and D-Coy would have to be ready for a throwdown for elimination.

Glitch looked around and realized that, even though they were kicked out, the ninjas were still enjoying the event. It was hard to guess their expressions, but it was clear that they were accepting the elimination just fine. They were acting sportive. Glitch compared it to the time when he had sulked after getting eliminated. Mo had commented on him being an 'annoying, can't-accept-reality prodigy' which the young breakdancer simply ignored.

Thinking about it wasn't much of a pleasure to the protégé, so he switched his train of thought to a different rail. Dare and MacCoy were showing something new here... was something going on between them? Perhaps Glitch had a new topic to post at night. There were definitely things up and going. What would happen?

Rasa trundled over to Riptide. "So, let's see who won," he spoke confidently. Bodie, devoid of fear of getting teased, shot back, "Don't come crying to me if you're going out to The Warzone again, kay?" while Emilia assumed a position of fighting. Having been to the gym many times, she could be lethal, Glitch knew. Lima joined in. "And if _you _lose, perhaps Boomy might take pity on you and give you an extra star," she suggested, and then said, "Oh, wait. He always does it."

Then Dare came along with MacCoy at her heels. The DJ-dancer had an idea that would be priceless. "And what about we hold a dare to whoever gets eliminated next?"

Mo, listening in, gasped. "Yeah!" he said with a laugh. Emilia replied with, "If Glitch was here, he'd protest because you have a guarantee not to look like a fool."

The B-Boy in his hoodie laughed. "This is a dare between Riptide, DCI and D-Coy," he declared. "How about doing it at Set Adrift?"

Rasa looked around. The winner of his battle hadn't even been decided yet, but he quickly said, "Deal," and shook hands with Mo even though the African-American could have only been joking. "Deal," added Bodie after a glance at Emilia.

_This could get juicy, _thought Glitch.

**Ooh, a dare is coming up! I do have ideas, but if you have any suggestions, feel free to review them! **

**Even if you don't, I'd love a review :P I got a lot on my things-to-do list, so things might get slowed down, sorry D:**

**Review and I might get motivated! Tomorrow's Saturday here, and once I get school done it's FanFiction forever! :D**


	28. Chapter 27: Twist Your Backside

After the three crews followed Mo's suggestion of a dare between them, it seemed as if something really good was settled. The three crews were confident; and now it was time to see who managed to slip out just minutes after the dare was created.

"And the winner for this knockout round is... Riptide! There's no denying to their awesome freestyle, now give it up 'cause things are about to get _tough!_"

At that, Bodie was so happy that he yelled, "The _victory _is at hand!" and did another move that Glitch wished he could do... when he was normal. "Huh, too bad for you," the ghost-prodigy berated. Rasa sighed and eyed Glitch before shrugging.

There would be about ten minutes of absence at The Warzone before the next round would start. That gave DCI and D-Coy a moment to rest and discuss their technique. Glitch exhaled noisily. He used to enjoy cussing the other dancers when they made heads and tails of their dance, but not at a knockout dance battle. Keeping the promise, he stood well away from Rasa so he wouldn't intimidate or disturb the DCI leader. He found himself closer to Angel, and the Latino was making the best of his long-term rest.

Oblio was leaning on one of the walls, and most of his expressions were hidden underneath a layer of dark blue hair. Even so, Glitch noticed the interest that the bluenette showed. After all, he'd still be coming along to Set Adrift. They would see not only the result of their dare, but they would also see the result of Glitch's prank. The protégé couldn't wait. In his mind, he imagined T so relieved that she jumped on the mattress only to find herself stuck to the pillows.

"Have _fun _for me," teased Emilia to Lima. The DCI dancer turned towards her and retorted calmly, "Why, didn't you get enough 'fun' back when you were arrested?" and then followed Rasa without another word. Emilia was left a bit speechless.

While DCI were discussing their second freestyle, D-Coy were doing alike. Glitch was bored, waiting for more action to happen. Bodie and Emilia were still standing close, and Angel, Aubrey, Mo, Taye, Lil'T, Oblio, Kichi, and Shinju were looking at the dancers – mainly Bodie – with hungry eyes. Finally, Aubrey distracted Emilia about a prank call while the rest of them quickly took hold and locked Bodie in an inevitable conversation.

"Look at that _chica, amigo. _Look, and _si, _I mean _look._" Angel goaded. Taye jumped in and whispered, "She's, like, _so _you. Come on, let me tell her you like her," she suggested. Bodie pushed the two dancers away irritably. Then his eyes widened hugely and he pointed at D-Coy. "Look at _them _instead," he hissed, causing nine pairs of eyes – including Glitch's – to dart and gaze at the duo instead. MacCoy had his face inches apart from Dare's, and the DJ was gripping her right hand. Everyone held their breath, even the ghost.

However, the moment was cut off then and there. MacCoy was the first to break eye contact, and then they continued to make up some brisk choreo. Dare looked slightly disappointed, but she helped him with the freestyle as well. The song that they were going to dance to was another Usher song; this time it was Twisted.

Rasa and Lima were already working well together; they were mind-alike, thoughts never too far from each other. With that, they progressed quickly and easily. The song was particularly difficult because of its length. Usually, the Dance Central dancers would remix or shorten the songs they used due to the fact that most dance routines could drain energy often. This one had been reduced, but not by much. It still left most of the dancers needing time to catch their breath.

Suddenly, Glitch heard the announcer call the two crews to The Warzone. This time, Dare was up front while MacCoy stood behind her. Lima walked over to the front, and Rasa took up the back. Glitch watched silently as the music started. The first move was Twister, then Rival Step followed, and Dare smiled as she pointed. Meanwhile from behind her, MacCoy looked at his partner intensively. Then came the move Twist-o'-Hop, and the male D-Coy dancer shifted his gaze while doing the move.

When it was the move Blue Moon, all four dancers had perfect timing and nailed the move with ease. Glitch remembered having slight troubleshooting issues with the move; arms and legs this way and that way, Glitch hadn't been able to make heads or tails out of it until Mo came by to help.

And then came Lockdown, which involved getting down and slapping the floor with one hand. It was partly easy; getting it down was simple, but getting back up again could get a bit shaky. Still, all the dancers made it though safely.

Once it was time for freestyle, things happened a bit differently for both crews. This time, Rasa kept doing a move similar to Blue Moon while Lima danced in the middle as Rasa slowly circled her. Then they faced each other and began to mirror. Dare and MacCoy were touching backs and bending their knees before turning back to each other. Then they stepped back slowly, moving their arms in a way to keep with the unique beat of the song. Then they briefly – only _briefly, _such a shame – held hands before letting go, and the pink-haired Japanese dancer spun around. _Darn, if they had held on longer, I could've taken some poor guy's camera to photo that good moment, _said the words glued to Glitch's mind.

The last moves, including one called Usher as a tribute to the artist, came and went by. Finally, everyone posed in their finishing move. Boomy began to jump-jump-jump and then showed five stars, golden as before. Rarely would it fill only to blue stars.

Each dancer exited. Now they were more tense, anticipating the dare. And the loser would definitely have to lose a lot of dignity. After all, among the many ideas for a dare, just one could humiliate some dancer to the core. _Two _'some dancers,' in this case.

Now, the question was: who would it be?

**Apologies for late chapter guys -_- tired, hee.**

**Review and maybe I'll change my opinion on who loses :P**


	29. Chapter 28: Movable Type

Rasa, Lima, Dare, MacCoy, Bodie, Emilia, Angel, Aubrey, Taye, Lil'T, Oblio, Kichi, Shinju, Glitch and Mo were now clustered in a group filled with tense air. Waiting for the announcing of the eliminated crew. Riptide weren't as uncomfortable as the others in their wait, especially not Bodie. The lifeguard was still humming in joy. Emilia too looked relieved to be freed from the threat of a dare.

The protégé, not being noticed by anyone but Rasa, got sick of the wait and shifted his thoughts towards his true self. He felt himself breathe, aware of each portion of air pulled in and breathed out. His heartbeat was as steady and slow as it had always been. The feeling of such calm, such quiet and such relaxation was teared away in a heartbeat when the announcer spoke.

"All four dancers were great; we all know that. Before we find out who's safe and who's out – and from what they're saying, who's in for a savage dare – why don't we give them all another applause?" At those words, everyone clapped and cheered. Among the calls were, "Go Rasa! Go Lima!" and "Dare's got the style, MacCoy's got the moves! D-Coy!"

"Now simmer down, simmer down! The crews appreciate your support, but we can only have one lucky winner. And I have to say that the winner of this intense battle is..." the announcer paused dramatically. This time, the fifteen dancers held their breath and silence fell. After all, everyone who had attended this knockout battle was free to come to Set Adrift later. Word traveled fast, so pretty much everyone knew about the upcoming dare already.

"DCI! Rasa and Lima get to continue in their battles while D-Coy are going to face their dare!"

A thousand reactions exploded. Rasa arrogantly smiled. "Irony is a cruel thing, isn't it, MacCoy, _Dare, _don't you think?" he savagely bashed with a smirk. Glitch pouted, "Oi! I was going to say that!" he hollered, still a bit cross after getting disturbed from a calming rest. Rasa simply raised an eyebrow when no one was looking. His expression said, 'Ah, but no one can hear you anyway, right?' which made Glitch grit his teeth in frustration.

Aubrey snapped her fingers in a princess-like way. "I see we already have another attraction on my yacht," she declared in a snobbish manner, but everyone didn't mind the way she spoke and continued to throw funny insults at the pair of dancers. Dare and MacCoy didn't look too upset, but their faces were still flushed pure red. Glitch, comfortably finding a bit of space for himself, did a joyous backflip. Rasa rolled his eyes at the prodigy, but Glitch didn't care and continued to breakdance in celebration. Laughing, Glitch shuffled back to Mo and noticed the 'original' King of Flash ready to suggest a ton of things D-Coy would have to do.

Bodie, glad to be free of teases, was the one with the most creative and smart ideas. He even tossed them a bit of burns when MacCoy tried to give out a number of excuses. "I was distracted there," the DJ hurriedly muttered, only to be subdued by the Riptide lifeguard. "Distracted by what? The girl dancing in front of you?" Bodie shot back. Glitch giggled. "Apply cold water to burned area," he remarked. His words made Rasa laugh, but everyone else did at what Bodie said anyway. Lucky for MacCoy, Dare had been led elsewhere for a conversation with Aubrey and Emilia at the time. And so, the Ukrainian DJ blushed as deeply as Bodie had the other day.

D-Coy were _never _going to forget this night.

Glitch heard the announcer again. "And in ten minutes, it's Riptide going on Flash4ward, and afterwards were going to see DCI and Lu$h give it their best shot!"

Most of the dancers stopped taking to listen, but when the announcement was over, conversation blasted into a go again. Glitch knew how the winner was decided, now that only four crews were left. The victors from the two rounds would then battle for first and second place. The losers would battle for third place; fourth place held no mention.

Bodie readied himself and grinned viciously. Emilia, who had been supportive of Flash4ward – mainly Lil'T – now wanted to so as she said and 'knock 'em dead.' The younger Flash4ward dancer too challenged, "Well, I think I'll take your advice into consideration and 'knock 'em dead!'" she exclaimed with feeling. Taye smiled and patted her little sister on the back.

Glitch turned to Rasa. "Who d'ya think will win first place, eh? Hopin' it ain't you," he added with a wide grin. Rasa grunted. "You can't be too sure," he replied when he was sure that no one was looking. The ghost-protégé groaned. "Now I wish I could've been in all this. Hi-Def, ready to rocket up the charts," he said with a sure and certain voice. Rasa, not so convinced, deliberately let out a loud sigh. Exasperated, Glitch exclaimed, "C'mon! Ain't two victories enough for ya?" which Rasa dismissed with a shake of his head.

"Fine... but I'm _so _beatin' ya up when I get that one chance," he threatened at last. With feeling, too. He did a complicated move, which made Rasa look a bit impressed, as Glitch used no ghost strength in the move. "I'd like to see that," said DCI's leader at last.

Taking that as an answer, Glitch made his way to Mo again and waited as the minutes passed. Riptide were getting ready once more, designing another freestyle session. Eleven pairs of eyes, be them green, brown, blue, or amber, watched them intently. Meanwhile, Taye was having a hard time turning her sister away from the pair-to-be. An unhappy D-Coy crew lightened a bit, waiting for their chance to spring into action before they would have to be miserably humiliated soon after.

After the winner was decided, D-Coy were going to have the worst night of their lives.

**Just so you know, the previous chapter, 'Twist Your Backside,' was named after a move ^^ likewise, this chapter, 'Movable Type,' was named after one of the moves I just can't get down yet :P**

**Review if you liked this chapter, guys ^^ I'm taking PunkRoseBlitz's suggestion into consideration, but if you'd like something more, review :P**


	30. Chapter 29: Moves Like Jagger To Win

Bodie smoothed his light-colored hair smartly, and then pushed his shades up his nose with his index finger. Emilia did likewise with her hair, fixing her dark brown strands, even though some of the curls still tumbled down close to her shoulders. Then they turned towards each other to discuss their freestyle session and techniques.

In the meantime, even Taye was fussing over her little sister's hair puffs. The younger girl kept grumbling as Taye pulled at the tufted tresses. She kept protesting, "Ow! That hurts!" to which Taye replied in a same short-tempered manner. "You know you want to look your best for your next battle," she snapped. "Like you said, 'you don't just mess with perfection,' girl!"

She did have a point. Everyone wanted to look their best for the throwdown.

Glitch remembered the huge fuss he had made when his hair had turned into nothing more than a slight mess. It made him stifle a laugh. He watched as Flash4ward practiced a move. The song they were going to dance to had been announced: Maroon 5's hit song Moves Like Jagger. The little prodigy loved the song, and so did Riptide and Flash4ward; the battle would be as intense as the previous ones, if not more.

D-Coy weren't very happy at the moment. Now word was already getting around about Dare's and MacCoy's feelings for each other. Dare was part Japanese, part British – Glitch didn't know any details other than that – and MacCoy was Ukrainian. They were a pair together, and every time someone heard the name MacCoy, they would remember the name 'Dare,' and vice versa. Glitch had met them ever since Hi-Def, even though the crew D-Coy wasn't formed yet at that time.

They were good friends with each other, but nothing more... until now. Did they like each other? Glitch didn't know. He wished he did. Luckily, he had the advantage of eavesdropping without a risk of getting found out. And now that Rasa knew about him and was on his side, Glitch was free to tell the DCI leader all about what he learned. Then word would spread like a wildfire and everyone in DCI would finish them off with no more than mere words.

Everyone had their opinions on this crew. "They're both good dancers, and they've been together for a long time," Rasa had said. Most of the others would say similar things.

And then there was Riptide. Bodie obviously liked Emilia, but what about the brunette herself? Did she like the blonde? Hints here and there were dropped, and yet no one could be sure. If they were in a story together, Bodie was the cop and Emilia was the culprit; the blonde was the good guy, and Emilia was the one with attitude. They were just friends, in the other dancers' eyes. As a crew, they were the ones to beat as well. They got along well and thought alike, and they were both sporty and easygoing.

Well, now that a battle was up, the Riptide duo would have to push their feelings aside – if she had any, in Emilia's case – and work together until the battles were over and they could bring D-Coy to their knees at Set Adrift.

Once both crews were ready and the time for preparation had run out, Rasa prompted Riptide to go out to The Warzone while Lima did the same with Flash4ward. Boomy, now reduced to zero stars, began to play the music. Glitch hummed along with the beat and even demonstrated a few breakdance moves that matched the beat. Suddenly he was propping himself up with just one hand, then collided with the floor and kicked out a leg, crouched, flipped, spun, and did a headspin.

He remained upside down for fifteen seconds before he leaped up and did another backflip. It would have been impossible without his ghost strength, however. Even though Glitch could stop himself from using too much strength at a time, he couldn't get himself to feel fatigue. Pain came in short bursts, for which he was both thankful and guilty for. It was like cheating. On second thought, Glitch might just have play-cheated once in a while. Like hacking into Rasa's system and tangling the wires until the time machine refused to work for an entire week.

He even sang some of the song's lyrics, "Just shoot for the stars, if it feels right, then aim for my heart..." as he danced. Meanwhile, the other dancers were only doing the simple, planned moves. Until freestyle kicked in again, or course.

Glitch had a hard time estimating the winners; all four dancers were doing very well. It was hard to describe what they were doing, and of Glitch tried to keep his eyes on only one dancer, the other would do something amazing to redirect his green haze.

Rasa, with a slight smirk on his face, observed both crews. Glitch made his way to the DCI leader's side after his workout close to Mo. Leaving his mentor, as usual, caused the dance apprentice to feel a prickle of discomfort, but he brushed it off simply. "Who d'ya think got this one down?" Glitch asked. Rasa simply gave the ghost a tiny shrug that escaped the eyes of the other dancers and agents. Lima, who seemed to notice the fact that Rasa's attention was distracted by something she couldn't see, asked him a question, brief and brisk. "He just asked me who might have this one as a win," explained Rasa. Lima nodded. She pointed at one crew, which was Flash4ward. "I think it's them, but Riptide are doing well too."

Bodie had a hard time concentrating; Glitch could see that. The blonde just couldn't get the moves down with enough passion. Not that it mattered, but if something were to happen, the lifeguard could react badly, thus ruining the dance. Until suddenly, Bodie and Emilia circled each other so fast, slid away from each other, then did the moves that they had performed many times. The only difference was that, this time, their moves went well with the beat of the song. Glitch remembered a couple lyrics that would match the pair.

Flash4ward weren't so suitable for the song compared to Riptide, but that was just one thing. Having been given songs that fit them well previously, this was an extra challenge.

Challenges were made to be done. But by who?

**Who'll won this round? RnR, keep my hopes up, and I'll pour in more updates! I need feedback XD**

**Reviews make Glitch move like jagger!**


	31. Chapter 30: Give Me Everything Tonight

With a smile, Glitch watched as the dancers did the last moves of their dance. They backed up slowly, each with their outro, and the agents clapped again. Unfortunately, the winner of this battle would not be announced until the next two crews were done with their knockout round.

And so prepared DCI and Lu$h to go against each other. Aubrey ran her manicured nails through her red hair. Angel, slightly behind her, slapped Bodie on the back and then teased the Riptide dancer again while Emilia wasn't looking. Suddenly, his name was called by his dance partner, and the Latino reluctantly backed away from his nagging to concentrate on their throwdown. Bodie heaved a sigh of great relief, as if he had finally taken care of one of the worst things possible in life.

Glitch made sure he kept his distance away from Rasa as to not disturb the older dancer. Sometimes he felt like his very presence could send chills down Rasa's spine. Once, when the ghost-kid had gone through Angel – and not enjoy it, of course – the Lu$h dancer had shivered. There were just some things that made a ghost the usual, stereotypical definition of a ghost itself.

Angel approached Aubrey and tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but she swiftly ducked and pushed the poor, desperate man away. That didn't faze Angel, but he refrained from trying to flirt with her and concentrate on their dance. Their freestyle usually consisted of Aubrey doing the 'real' moves and Angel simply backing her up.

Rasa and Lima were different. Their freestyle was parallel, sometimes mirrored, side-by-side, or face-to-face. They rarely let one dancer do all the hard stuff and let the other do all the easy moves. They divided their moves well, but there would be a moment where Rasa stepped forward and Lima backed him up, because they planned for Lima to dance in front of Rasa for this dance.

Bodie was making sure that he stayed away from Emilia as often as possible; she didn't notice anything odd about his behaviour, however. The female Riptide dancer was again talking to Dare, making fun of the poor Japanese-British D-Coy dancer. Sometimes, Bodie would turn and, with a hidden fond smile, run his gaze over Emilia.

That was one thing he couldn't hide from Glitch's searching nephrite jade orbs. The lifeguard simply couldn't deny his own actions. Oblio once said to Bodie, "Actions speak louder than words." It was true in more than one way. The Asian bluenette had also remarked, "She might just be in love with a charming, kind soul... oh, and then there's you, too," which had crushed the blonde's hopes. Bodie had protested immediately, and Oblio nodded. "Look, you've proved it again. You like her. The universe has sent the message to me," he joked.

Glitch watched as time passed and the dancers prepared to battle. Boomy was now reset to zero stars, but would probably fill up again once the dance began. This time, they were dancing to Give Me Everything by Pitbull.

Rasa and Lima positioned themselves, Angel tagging along quickly after. Aubrey had been waiting for a while now, and she stepped up confidently with a sassy way of walking. Glitch groaned at her. Rasa, who had heard, just chuckled a bit. Then the competitors prepared each other and the music started, almost without warning.

The song was pretty hard, and the dancers began with Tails and Salsero. Angel was obviously _made _for the entire song and dance routine, because with a smirk, he did the moves with more passion than any other dancer at The Warzone. His smile, according to what Mo had told Glitch, could bring every girl to blush red as a rose. Well, any girl but Aubrey. Glitch couldn't figure out why Angel wouldn't just give up on her. Then again, Angel could easily bring down any other girl's defenses. Perhaps that as why he liked Aubrey so much.

The other dancers were in a tight cluster. They watched the dancers with interest. Well, all but Bodie, that was. His eyes were once again on Emilia. Glitch sighed loudly, and then watched as Mo whispered in Bodie's ear. "There ya go again, watchin' yo' girl," he muttered. Bodie grunted, and then turned his head to watch the dancers' battle again, but visibly, the Riptide dancer couldn't hide his reluctance to tear his gaze away from Emilia.

Rasa, Lima, Angel and Aubrey did Club Walker and Dodger, which was a bit tricky. Putting one leg in front of the other and then pulling it back, afterwards actually walking and slightly bending down. Then came Barreto Clap and Scoop & Bow. The lyrics were matching for Angel now. _Take advantage of tonight, _and _I can make you my queen. _It seemed like Angel was trying to get the dance right, but not to impress Aubrey, but to actually get it _right._ After all, the redhead had blamed Lu$h's earlier failure on the Latino.

They did Archer and Valentine next. Boomy was filled to the second star, and was about four fifths to the third. The shiny boombox kept shaking and bouncing at the dancers' heels.

The crowd was blown when the four dancers did Propose A Toast. The move was hard because the dancers had to get low and quickly prepare for the next move. Glitch began to hum with the rhythm again and waited until the dance was finally over.

With that, the dancers were greeted with a final applause. Glitch, floating above them all, descended and hung only a few inches above the floor. He watched as Lu$h and DCI came to see the group again. Dare's face lightened up a bit at this, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she backed away and suddenly held MacCoy's hand close to her. The surprised DJ's face showed the fact that he didn't expect her gesture. He murmured a few reassuring words to her, but Dare just smiled and gripped his hand. MacCoy grinned back. He whispered into her ear. Glitch speedily leaned close to hear his words.

"Look, no one's watching. Don't worry. They don't know."

What were they up to? Did they both like each other for real?

**I'm so happy right now! In the past couple chapters, this story had doubled in views! Thanks so much guys! And all those reviews! **

**Update: So many mistakes, the shame T-T**

**Just curious, but do you fellow authors like to listen to music while you write? Me, well, it depends on my mood. I usually listen to music with my headset and find a song that matches the chapter. **

**And what is your number one favorite song to dance to, and which character do you use? I mostly dance to Usher songs, mainly Scream, with either Glitch, Rasa or Angel. **

**And look, Dare and MacCoy like each other :P**


	32. Chapter 31: Impending Torture Ahead

Glitch, with his jaw dropped open, could only stand – or float, that was – as MacCoy took hold of Dare's hand and pulled it close. The pink-haired Japanese blushed, a rosy tint spreading across her cheeks. Hey eyes went wide. Then she looked into MacCoy's eyes, and gently wrapped her arm around his neck. They were obviously sharing an unforgettable moment. But then Dare faltered. "I... I just don't think I'm ready yet," she murmured. MacCoy did nothing more than give her a charming smile. "Don't worry," he replied, and Dare gave him a thankful nod. The DJ continued with, "We'll see when all this is over."

The ghostly dancer didn't know what to do or say. He just gaped. Literally, he was just lingering above the floor with his mouth open and pretty much doing nothing more than stare. The only thing that stopped him from staying in that position any longer was Rasa's hand, waving in front of his greenstone orbs. "Hey. Hey. Earth to Glitch. Honestly!" hissed the DCI dancer.

Glitch finally shook his head. "Another two? Don't they think Bodie and Emilia is enough already?" His eyes glimmered, a mixture of confusion, amusement, and plain disbelief. MacCoy slowly stepped away from Dare kindly. She was left speechless. Rasa quickly tore his eyes away from the sight. Glitch did the same after a couple moments.

The winners were announced. "And now we'll have two crews fighting for third place... Lu$h and Flash4ward, prepare yourself, because DCI and Riptide are grabbing first and second this time!"

Aubrey and Lil'T made faces at each other. The young Flash4ward dancer sneered, "Well, if that's that, I'm still gonna get it!" to which Aubrey answered to with, "If you can, that is." Lil'T didn't look fazed by the remark, and instead looked even more furious and challenging. D-Coy swiveled around to see the action. In ten minutes Angel, Aubrey, Taye and Lil'T would dance to Fire Burning by Sean Kingston.

Once again, it was a Lu$h song, so the crew would probably be able to take it down easy. Glitch felt like it was Be-Nice-To-Aubrey-And-Her-Crew-Because-She'll-Let- Us-Go-On-Her-Yacht-Later Day. Or B.N.T.A.A.H.C.B.S.L.U.G.O.H.Y.L. Day or whatever. Glitch shrugged.

While the dancers prepared, the ghost-prodigy had his eyes open, in case something would go on with D-Coy again. However, MacCoy kept his distance away from Dare. So instead, Glitch redirected his gaze to Rasa, who was yet again elbowing Bodie with a smirk. The DCI leader indicated Emilia with his chin, and Bodie's cheeks flushed red again and he tried to think of an excuse. The lifeguard cleared his throat purposefully loud, and Rasa smiled before walking close to Glitch with his hands in his pockets.

"So that's that. Soon we'll be able to torture the poor couple," whispered the DCI leader, much to Glitch's pleasure, knowing that it was D-Coy that Rasa was referring to. So they just watched while the music finally started and conversation was abruptly cut off. Everyone stopped speaking and turned their curious eyes to see the two crews battle each other. The four dancers at The Warzone started with moves like 911 and Merge Back.

Bodie stood about three feet from Emilia and was looking even more shy and coy than ever. Oblio, standing alone a couple metres away, flashed a grin, and his almond-shaped brown eyes glimmered like when a cat saw its prey. As it was, he treaded over. Unfortunately for the blonde, pretty much everyone else came over to tease, except of course humiliated D-Coy. Rasa, Lima, Mo, plus a number of backup dancers and agents. But to those dancers' dread, Emilia turned around and made her way towards the crowd. Each and every dancer tried to hide their disappointment. Rasa, to name one, cleared his throat self-consciously. Lima casually approached her dance partner in an attempt to cover up for him. Luckily, Emilia noticed nothing.

Meanwhile at The Warzone, Flash4ward were the ones getting to the win. Boomy was filling up well, and they were halfway through their freestyle session. Everyone cheered for Taye and her sister, leaving Lu$h in the dust. Aubrey, frustrated, didn't say anything, but her face was beetroot red in anger. Angel tried to back her up, but it was beginning to show who was winning.

Glitch watched as the two were finished, and waited for the announcement. It would take a while, however. Lil'T, looking glad to be done with the dance at last, said, "Whew! Not that was hot!"

Dare clapped her hands along with the others, but then she faltered and again, shared a glance with MacCoy. A moment later, however, her fondness evaporated once her attention was distracted. The announcer coughed into the microphone and said, "We've just seen a great performance by Lu$h and Flash4ward, and yet only one can grab the third throne. And that winner is..."

Everyone held their breath. Lil'T looked like she was about to explode with tension and suspense.

"Flash4ward!"

About a thousand reactions spread across the dancers' faces. Angel quickly scooted away from Aubrey as to avoid a serious case of mental whipping. The redhead herself didn't look very pleased. However, her face read the fact that she hoped to be the main attraction at Set Adrift.

Lil'T beamed, her older sister bearing a similar expression. Riptide and DCI, who would battle soon after, congratulated them, and Mo followed soon after, knowing that no good would come from pitying on Lu$h.

Bodie and Emilia would soon go against Rasa and Lima, and preparing would be essential. Rasa gestured to Glitch, who merely nodded. Meanwhile, Mo appeared to bend down, as if wanting to speak to a certain protégé a head shorter than he was. Glitch sighed. Mo was obviously feeling the loss. Trying to cover up that loss wasn't easy, but Glitch had to bear it. It was, after all, less than two weeks since all... _this _had occurred.

Rasa looked at Glitch with sympathetic eyes. Glitch could only swallow. "Good luck," he said halfheartedly, then forced a smile. Rasa seemed like he was being dragged by uncertainty, but still broke eye contact.

This was just one Error 404 that would have to wait. Besides, the dancers would notice his prank after the huge throwdown. The battles were drawing to an end, and after that a blast would have to happen. Maybe, when D-Coy did their dare, they would be threatened by Aubrey. Glitch imagined Aubrey saying, 'Do the dare... or I'll throw you off my yacht!'

That lifted the ghost's spirits up.

**Do you think I should pick up the rating to a T? **

**Please review, being stuck at Saturday school tomorrow will definitely **_**not **_**be fun, so seeing a review come up around that time would be a blast! **


	33. Chapter 32: Airplanes – They Better Fly

**Late chapter, sorry. I'm trying to scribble some cover for my stories, and the result is always with weeping over. Lol yeah. **

The prodigy watched as Rasa straightened his tie, readying himself for the last, deciding dance-off. Bodie and Emilia were now closer to each other, and the lifeguard was trying not to flush his cheeks crimson. Emilia clapped in front of his eyes, and he jerked in surprise. Emilia said, "We _need _to focus, B." Bodie nodded, and kept his gaze locked with hers as they prepared to dance to Airplanes by B.O.B.

Glitch could practically feel the waves of displeasure from Aubrey. Angel was basically hiding behind Mo and Oblio to escape her wrath. Glitch laughed. The Latino didn't wear a hat or visor in his DCI outfit, so it was easy to catch his shaky expression written all over his face. Mo chuckled and talked to Angel, obviously about Bodie and his crush on a certain brunette. Angel tried to answer the B-Boy directly without sneaking a scared glance at Aubrey once in a while. Sure, he liked the redhead, but he wouldn't flirt with her if she was disappointed in him.

Finding himself a more comfortable position next to his mentor, Glitch settled into place and observed as Rasa and Lima began to discuss the moves. Lima performed Wish Step, and Rasa nodded agreeably. Glitch didn't really look at Lima at the moment, but she was sort of... _blushing?_

She opened her mouth as if she were to say something, but quickly closed it and hid her previous air behind her usual, workaholic look. Glitch didn't notice too much, as his eyes were still on Mo. The older Hi-Def dancer appeared a bit disappointed by his prodigy's absence, but of course tried to hide it. Glitch ran a hand through his spiky hair with a distracted feeling.

Soon it was time for the dance to take place. The Warzone, now with darkened surroundings and all the lights focused on the stage-like floor, was like a tempting to all the dancers, even though everyone knew only Riptide and DCI would be there by now. Even Glitch felt the tug to go out there and dance.

Rasa looked ready, but Glitch had his eyes open for anything D-Coy would be up to. The pair were acting rather strange. One minute they were avoiding each other, the next they were falling into the other's grasp. It was like a game.

Bodie and Emilia did a fist bump, then walked out to the dance floor. Rasa and Lima prepared for the battle, and the music started. The beginning piano notes caused everyone to swivel towards the main attraction.

They began with simple moves. They brought out the 'Airplanes' theme with the move Smooth Out / Bank, then did Wish Step. When the melody changed and the lyrics became faster, so did the moves. Glitch watched, still wondering why the dance was categorized as easier than Scream. In the ghost's opinion, Scream was actually easier.

When freestyle began, the dancers' harmonizing broke for a moment, then fell into piece again even though each dancer was doing a different move.

"The art of dancing, to make sure the moves harmonize with the beat... they are doing well," said a voice from behind Glitch. The prodigy turned around to see Oblio, who had made the remark. Flash4ward, who were close behind and had heard the bluenette, nodded in agreement. Glitch did too, even though the gesture wouldn't be seen by anyone.

Glitch gaped in surprise when Rasa did a difficult move in particular, where his feet were almost like a blur. Briefly, the ghost-prodigy wondered how he himself could do the move without having his legs entangled together. A couple agents and dancers cheered. Lima topped the move up, and her dancing style was similar to that of her partner.

Meanwhile, Riptide wee doing just as well. Bodie managed to briskly move backwards without looking, and miss crashing into Emilia by no more than a centimetre. It was either because they had very good coordination or Bodie had a sixth sense. Glitch was actually inclined to believe in the second option.

When freestyle was over and everyone fell back into place, the lights dimmed out and then shone twice as bright, cueing another round of applause from the audience. Mo said something about their dance, but the clapping was so loud that Glitch could hardly hear his mentor. The whoops and yells were as noisy as rain on a solid roof.

The dancers finished the routine with a fist in the air. The light fuses shorted out and the HQ looked to be back to normal. This time, both crews did an outro together, and then the neon stripe lights that separated The Warzone from the rest of the floor disappeared, leaving the place to appear as it usually did. Rasa flipped a switch on Boomy, therefore turning the boombox off. "It's a bit overheated," wheezed the DCI leader among his panting. Glitch sneaked a hand and touched the metal and felt a slight heat from it. He nodded.

The winner would be announced soon. Dare looked even more dreading and uncertain than before. MacCoy kept trying to comfort her with a laugh. That made Dare smile. But when Lu$h, Flash4ward, Riptide, DCI, Ninja, and even Mo and Oblio approached, the pink-haired dancer quickly straightened up. Glitch chuckled. Aubrey walked over to them, her hands on her hips like in the Diva move. Glitch groaned at that.

The Lu$h redhead – after an angry glance at Angel, who had finally decided to turn up at last – announced, "Well, well, well. Let's see what we have in store later, shall we?" with scorn clear in the way she spoke. Emilia screamed, "Yeah!" in agreement before Bodie held her by the shoulder. "Hold up, let's not go too rough on them," he said. Aubrey replied to that by pushed Emilia aside to face the blonde, and said, "I'll throw you off the yacht if you keep up like that."

Bodie grimaced. From behind, Glitch did the same. Even so, with so much on the line, Bodie would definitely learn to keep his opinions to himself for tonight. After the winner was announced, the real deal would happen.

"And the winner is..."

**Cliffhanger :P Tryna draw a cover ain't that easy, turns out. Alas, that's me. **

**Review!**


	34. Chapter 33: A Dare For D-Coy

"Dance Central Intelligence!"

Glitch backflipped, even though he didn't actually care who won. Rasa and Lima high-fived, while Bodie shook his head in defeat. At least Riptide still reached second place. Emilia shook hands with Lima, and smiled. Rasa, instead of doing the same with Bodie, raised an eyebrow to the blonde. "She's sporty," he commented, "no wonder you like her."

Bodie pretended to sigh deeply. Glitch sniggered. Aubrey didn't say much, and only turned back to give Angel a mental slap in the face. Angel tried to calm her down, but she was still steaming beneath her tender looks. Glitch pitied the Latino.

Meanwhile, Oblio was watching, and a smile touched his face when he saw the rift between the two Lu$h dancers. For a moment Glitch wondered whether the bluenette would tag along to Set Adrift, but then decided that _anyone _would go see the D-Coy dare anyway. Everyone looked to be on the edge waiting to see what would occur.

Among the agents, Mo was conversing. The prodigy shuffled his feet and slipped through the taller dancers to make his way towards his mentor. He immediately heard his name uttered by Mo. With his interest caught, he perked up to hear Mo talk about a night in particular, a huge prank war between the two.

Glitch got the picture that Mo was tolerating the prodigy's absence well. After two weeks, Mo had begun to open up again and act more like his old self even though Glitch wasn't there. The ghost himself wasn't sure whether to be happy or not for his older brother.

Rasa and Lima were now the center of attention. With a dancer saying their congratulations to the pair every now and then, it made Glitch think about how to squeeze between all the dancers without going through them. Finally, he took flight and remained suspended in the air about six feet above the floor.

The male DCI dancer bent down and appeared to press a button on Boomy. The boombox began to play, a song without lyrics. It had a couple dancers moving, and even Aubrey did the Princess Snap. Usually that would bring groans out of everyone, but they still acted nice to be granted access to the yacht later. Angel let out a sigh of relief, only to be intimidated again once Aubrey shot him a death glare.

Each dancer made off to Set Adrift. The location was relatively far, but each dancer took a mount there. Lu$h took a pricey care, to name one. Oblio took his bike, and a coupe other dancers rode in along with DCI and their own car. Somehow, everyone managed to find a way to get to Aubrey's yacht, and in fifteen minutes, everyone was off.

Glitch, of course, could have simply flown there, but he lazily laid back and waited until the last of the dancers were about to leave the HQ empty. After they were out of the underground exit, Glitch looked up and tailed Rasa. The DCI leader was driving, and unlike a certain Latino, he wasn't speeding up _too _much. Angel was driving at such a speed that Glitch decided to leave Rasa to his devices and instead rocketed after the Lu$h car. His eyes widened as he began to torpedo as fast as the car, then gained even more speed and rushed ahead before he flipped backwards and high-tailed back until Angel had finally caught up with him.

Once all the dancers made it to the yacht and entered, Glitch ran up and excitedly watched. Instead of having the dare in Aubrey's room, they set it outside. Some of the backup dancers and agents were dancing, and Glitch appreciated the fact that they were making an effort in taking up the dance floor. However, some of the main dancers decided to play hard again.

This time, the song that played was Spice Up Your Life by Spice Girls, and Kichi and Emilia were dancing to it. Still caught up in the beat, they did the salsa while Glitch watched from metres above. His eyes flashed green, then he noticed the ship engine roar loudly. Suddenly, the yacht cruised forward at an angle, cutting the water behind it into a chopping white bubbly line.

The dancers didn't stop their dance routine, however. This time, there was no freestyle session. Kichi did the dance with a newfound flare. The dance was pretty much hers, as there was even a move that was named after the Blue Ninja. Emilia, next to her, also seemed happy. Actually, the entire atmosphere was quite joyful at the moment. Even D-Coy were beginning to lose themselves in the music.

In Glitch's eyes, it appeared that a while would occur of more dancing before the dare would be set. The ninja and Riptide dancers were both qualifying rather well. They weren't locked in tense battle may more, so both of them pressed less finesse on the dance and focused more on simply enjoying themselves.

Glitch watched as they were finished with the dance. Emilia, with her usual flash of energetic fire, offered, "Anyone up for the dance?"

Usually, Glitch would jump in and take the chance immediately. This time, a backup dancer took over, and Rasa joined a while after. The victor was now dancing to OMG, but with less harder moves. Everyone was exhausted after the battle, after all.

Finally, Aubrey issued the dare, and soon all the dancers were sitting in a tight circle close to the front of the yacht. The Lu$h princess quickly started with, "A reminder that if you don't do the dare, you'll be thrown off the yacht."

_Whoa, that's brutal, _Glitch thought. It was obvious that Dare and MacCoy were being cornered with no way out. Mo leaned slightly forward, and said, "So, whatchu going to pull off?" he asked with a grin. Dare bit her nails nervously as they waited for someone to suggest something. Glitch smiled and said, "Ya might hafta get 'em to the Princess's room, Rasa."

The DCI leader just dismissed him, so Glitch sighed and waited to see what would go on.

Now just _what_ were D-Coy going to face?

**Now kiss! Haha, if you have any other suggestions (even though I'm madly going for the one PunkRoseBlitz gave me) better review before it's too late! Or are you looking forward to just the same thing? Tell me your thoughts! **

**Wow, I can't believe my story's reached over sixty reviews! And somehow I've really gone far with the DC fanbase, having made a total of seven non-crossover stories here. I actually have a request, two upcoming one-shot drafts, and an entire collection of one-shots for a certain character (no, it isn't Glitch, but don't cry) is coming up as well. **

**Like Dare / MacCoy? I've made a one-shot about then, titled My Addiction if you're interested :3**

**It's already forty thousand words into this story, OMG. It's kinda funny that I've been putting over ten chapters into one night in the story timeline, but believe me, the rest of the story will be longer than that. I'm hoping to describe another day or night this long, and maybe even make this one of the longest fanfics I've ever pulled off. **

**So while I switch my crazy update mode on, I hope you'll review and make my day ^^ I hope your day / night turns out well for you too!**


	35. Chapter 34: Let It All Set Adrift

**Gotta say sorry for the late chapter again, I'm working on two one-shots right now. It's been a while since I've replied to my reviews, so...**

**PunkRoseBlitz: Having the site down was really frustrating, wasn't it? :/ And thanks! As everyone's been wanting them to kiss, I guess...**

**heyitsme22: Commitment isn't easy sometimes, but yeah, I try mah best :D**

**AfricanAmazon: All I can say is 'probably.'**

Crazy scenarios were running through Glitch's head. He imagined all the insane things Dare and MacCoy would probably _not _do, for instance having them travel too far in time or try to trash a nearby Walmart, or Glitch's favorite: wearing a clown suit to the grocery store. Still, all of them had a small chance of becoming reality as most were already done by previous dare games the group played. All the other dancers were discussing what they should do. But Mo suggested something that was easy and yet unexpected.

"MacCoy, I dare you to kiss her."

Glitch's jaw dropped open. Everyone else gaped at Mo. MacCoy looked relieved, but quickly covered it up behind a look of sheer, sheer horror. Emilia nodded approvingly. "Yeah!" she hollered, Bodie laughing and saying, "Definitely." He high-fived Emilia and they laughed at Dare's 'poker face' while the D-Coy dancer's cheeks began to turn crimson. Rasa chuckled, and he obviously supported Mo's idea. Oblio looked up from whatever he was doing and grinned.

"What?" MacCoy asked shakily. His goggles were put on now – probably during the trip to the yacht – so it was hard to see his eyes from behind the green lenses. Mo shrugged unsympathetically. "You lost the battle; you gotta do it." Glitch laughed at the statement; Mo was obviously making a point there. Somehow, even though it wasn't completely him who issued the dare, it seemed as if he was the one to answer to when it came to pranks and games. After all, the title 'King of Flash' didn't come from nowhere.

Aubrey leaned in. "And if you don't, you're off the boat – after we coat you in mustard and ketchup and make this place into the Red Sea."

MacCoy gulped, then shook his head slowly while pushing the goggles up to his forehead. Dare didn't say anything, but in a lightning-fast moment MacCoy gripped her tightly, pulling her in, and in that millisecond her lips were against his. Dare's eyes shot open. "Mmph," she moaned. Every other dancer stopped breathing.

All too soon, however, MacCoy shoved her away and let the emotionless moment pass by. He swiftly put on his goggles again, leaving Dare's face in a tight blush. She tried to cover it up, but soon her cheeks were as pink as her hair. MacCoy faced Mo, and his eyes were visibly narrowed. "There, happy?"

"Quite so," replied the African-American dance mentor in a tone that was close to a laugh. Meanwhile, the protégé looked on, wishing he could interfere in _some _way. Rasa hid his grin behind his hand. "Well, that was something, I'll have to say," he clarified. Lima nodded. Emilia started to giggle, then lost herself and started laughing so loud that Dare blushed even more intensively. The Riptide dancer breathed deeply to stop her giggles and she wiped a tear of laughter from her eyes. "That... was hilarious."

"You said it," Bodie agreed. At that, though, each and every other dancer gushed at the blonde's fondness towards Emilia. Bodie quickly said, "Ahem," and tried to hide his earlier ease. Emilia looked at him with a face that read, 'What?'

Angel directed his gaze towards MacCoy. "You should've enjoyed it while it lasted, _amigo. _That _rosa hermosa, _she and you, you know you had a great chance." He kept his voice low and spoke slowly, just to make a point. Glitch stood by as Mo nodded in agreement, causing MacCoy's eyes to crinkle in distaste. "Mhm," was all he could say.

Lil'T didn't look too pleased with what the kiss ended up with; she rolled her eyes. Taye noticed her sister's displeasure and suggested for the girls to spend the time in Aubrey's room, to which the guys groaned at; even Rasa. Dare, after brushing away her shyness, quietly noted that she would come along. Taye and her younger sister nodded in unison. Aubrey allowed them to use her room, so in the end Rasa, Mo, Oblio, Bodie, Angel, MacCoy, Shinju and Glitch were left behind. And so Aubrey, Taye, Lil'T, Emilia, Dare and Kichi tagged along. Lima sighed, giving the male dancers a wistful look. "I guess I don't have a choice, do I?" she shrugged, amusement in her tone. Rasa nodded, chuckling to himself.

While Lima caught up with the others, the guys were left with nothing to do but chew Bodie and MacCoy up with teasing. Eventually, each dancer got tired of it. Glitch was lying on his back, groaning loudly to announce his boredom to the world; or Rasa, more likely.

Finally, Glitch heard what he was waiting for hours for. Actually, it had only taken five minutes, but it always felt like hours to the mischievous prodigy before his pranks would be noticed. Aubrey barked, "What is the meaning of this, exactly?"

"_Que –_" Angel was cut off by the other dancers and their curious mutters. Aubrey, frustrated, dragged every male dancer off their feet and to the room. What they could see at the beginning was Lil'T, sulking and leaning against a wall with her arms crossed. She looked to be utterly pissed off, and it wasn't surprising.

The entire room was such a mess that it would take a very long time to clean up. The pillows were littered across the room with pieces of tape stuck all over to them. A couple cans of soda were on the floor, some of them leaking. The entire mattress was off its stand, leaving everything a huge mess.

"Would you mind telling me who did this?" Aubrey stated, keeping her voice careful and yet cold and calculating. She took in the expressions on each dancer's face.

Glitch thought of what else he would pull off. He came up with a conclusion quick enough.

More ghost involvement was on the way.

**This was updated in such a hurry that typos are probably common here, sorry :p**

**Glitch's gonna mess things up now, trashing the room as a ghost, and he's gonna scare everyone until the ship becomes a horror. Got suggestions? Review! **


	36. Chapter 35: This Room Is Occupied

"Hmm."

Glitch rubbed his chin while thinking of the best way to freak everyone out; Rasa excluded, but Glitch would still pull his ropes if he could. Aubrey was still rambling on and on about the mess in the room. Finally, Glitch settled on grabbing one of the white sheets and quickly throwing it, causing the sheet to drape over all the dancers. Lil'T let out a scared exclamation. Kichi struck out with her blades, but they were mere accessories, not weapons, so she could hardly tear the sheet up.

Then Glitch took hold of an unopened soda can. He shook it like a maniac, and then – obviously – sprayed the contents onto the sheet. "One for the bad boy!" he yelled, making Rasa cringe loudly. Somehow, Mo managed to thrust the sheet off then all, so that it backfired and hit Glitch in the face. Grunting angrily, Glitch pulled the sheet off, and self-consciously brushed it off him, leaving all the other dancers – except Rasa – to stare at where the sheet had been. Something had been under that sheet, but almost no one knew that. After a while, Lima didn't seem to be so scared, but Aubrey stopped her speech of onslaughts, her mouth half-open in the shape of an 'O.'

Finally, Glitch flung pillows at the other dancers, having half of them, mostly the females, to run off screaming in fear. While running at top speed, Dare yelled, "Poltergeist!" which was in fact very accurate. Glitch let her run off, knowing she'd be back for more anyway.

The only guys that ran away along with them were MacCoy and Angel. Bodie had the 'exorcist' expression that was on his face during the spray can incident. Mo was a little shaky, and Oblio was just downright curious, but cautious at the same time. Rasa was about to say something, but Glitch laid his fingers on the last pillow left before hurling it into the DCI leader's face. "Mff!" was all Rasa could say.

The next thing Glitch did was to toss a bed cover over the others again, leaving then screaming. The soda pooled at their feet, causing some of the dancers to lose their balance and almost fall painfully to the ground. There feet slipped and slid until they finally fought against the cover and it finally dropped. MacCoy let out a sigh of relief.

Glitch proceeded by simply shutting the door. He went through it and saw the guys running away in fear. Rasa, the only one who _wasn't _yelling pointlessly around the corridors, was only trying to calm the others down.

All Glitch did was watch until they disappeared around a corner. Then he got to work on the room. He poked his head through the ceiling, so that only legs, arms and a torso were visible from the room. He saw a number of wires, so he decided to mess with them along with lots of other things he would do. Rasa wouldn't be pleased, Glitch knew.

He twiddled with a wire and pulled at it, snapping the cable into two. The light that lit the room up shorted out immediately. Glitch knew a lot about wires and how they worked, so he kept breaking and tying them until he was finally pleased with the results he got.

In the now semi-lit room, all the light he could see was from outside. It was night, but the window was open, so Glitch made use of it and began to turn the room atmosphere around completely. He cut the edges of the soda cans, piling them up. Other than that, he did a lot of serious damage to the mattress. Aubrey would probably not care and simply buy another one. That was what Glitch enjoyed in pranking the redhead; he never got into _that _much trouble because she was so rich that she could afford pretty much anything.

After trashing away the _entire _room for a second time – and doing some _other _things he would reveal once every one saw them – Glitch exited through the window, even though he was slightly reluctant to get off his feet.

Flying above the water was a new experience to him, but pranking Lu$h with such an expanse was too. He skimmed the waters, a smile on his face, then stopped. And did another something that would soon be revealed.

Once that was taken care of, he came upon the other dancers, who were huddled together. All of them were looking very uncomfortable. Even DCI. Rasa looked up when Glitch approached, and he appeared angry. When Glitch got nearer, Rasa whispered, "You just _had _to do all that, didn't you?"

"Yep." was all Glitch said. Rasa grunted. Lima, also noticing Rasa speaking, faced him, her eyes softening. "Let him be," she joked. Rasa didn't find her humor appealing and harrumphed. Glitch noticed the others, breathing fast and scared. They were talking, urgently so. Lil'T looked like she was about to fall from her seat. Glitch teased her, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. "Need your nightlight, little girl?"

Rasa glared disapprovingly at him.

Glitch sighed. He wished the dancers would just hurry up and see what he has pulled off. After Riptide and Hi-Def had been pranked, this was his highest trick yet. Next would be Flash4ward, then maybe Ninja. All he knew was that he would finish everyone off once he had the chance. Glitterati would be last. Kerith and Jaryn were on the top of Glitch's hate list, of course, so they would deserve a prank so embarrassing that it would take years before anyone would forget.

"I've had enough!" Emilia bellowed all of a sudden. She practically banged the table she was sitting by, and then hollered, "I'm going to see what's been pulling our strings. Anyone with me?" she demanded. Bodie, looking rather surprised by his crush's sudden outpouring, held his hands up and said carefully, "I... I don't know if that's a good ide–"

"He's scared," Mo pointed out, chuckling. "I'm coming, though."

MacCoy laughed and decided that he too would volunteer. Bodie did the same soon after, Angel voting for himself to go along. Finally the girls decided to leave, and go check the room as well. Rasa and Lima both looked like they had no choice anymore, so they followed. Glitch smiled. They were going to see the unexpected again.

**The next chapter will follow in Rasa's point of view, just to add a little variation. **

**Review? I am posting a one-shot soon :D**


	37. Chapter 36: An Unexpected, Harmless Fear

**In reply to most of the reviews that suggested Glitch's pranks backfiring on him again, that actually had be considering a very special plot twist. I'll see what I can do ;)**

**This chapter is still told in third person, but it follows Rasa and notes his thoughts, feelings and what he knows of.**

Rasa, unsure of what to do at the moment, hesitantly followed the others to the room. Lima, who was about a foot in front of him, purposely slowed down so that he could catch up. Like the usual, she had this questioning look on her face. Rasa dismissed her by staying mute.

He took a look at the ghost that was behind him. Even now, the sight sent chills down his spine. Seeing the protégé made him feel like there was still things that humans just couldn't solve yet. Why Glitch? Why a ghost? Rasa shook his head as Glitch took off and hung a metre above Angel. The Latino was still unaware of Glitch's presence. Now Rasa hoped that the others found things alright. _Impossible._

When they had finally reached the room at last, Aubrey was screaming again. _Let's see what the kid got in store for us, _Rasa sighed mentally. _Hopefully we won't find chicken guts under the pillows. _But what really was there was definitely _not_ what he expected.

The first thing that unnerved him was the odd scent that hit his senses. When he looked inside, he saw the horror in front of the door.

A fish.

A _freaking _fish.

Sure, Rasa was a self-controlled guy with nerves, but it was a _fish _they were facing. And the freaking fish smelled like hell. And Rasa in particular _hated _fish.

So what in the name of hell is he supposed to do when his nightmare was right in front of him?!

Well, Glitch knew. He flung the cursed thing into Rasa's face. The fish hit Rasa squarely in the face, and Rasa almost fell over before he found the nerve to gripped the disgusting thing with a hand. _Calm down. _Rasa thought the thing would come up and sink its teeth into his hand.

_It's just a fish. _

He watched as the living creature struggled to free itself.

_It won't hurt you. _

It stopped moving.

_It won't bite you. _

Rasa thought it was dead.

_Breathe. _

It moved again. Rasa's mind went into overdrive.

_It's just a fish. _

_It's just a fish. _

_It's just a FISH! _

The slime had gone all over his face. Grimacing, Rasa tried not to show his fear of the creature while he picked it up and hurled it _right into Glitch's face. _"What the–?!" the prodigy snuffled when the finned item slammed into his chest.

Of course, only Rasa saw that happen. Lil'T, who had been standing in the front row, slowly backed away when she saw the fish crash into thin air. _It was just a fish... it was just a fish... _Rasa tried his best to calm down. He still hated fish. He had ichthyphobia. He was absolutely scared of them.

Icy fingers ran down his spine, making him shiver while everyone else did too, but because they saw the fish crash into some invisible barrier.

"...C-come on," Angel finally stammered, breaking the intense silence. He reached for the doorknob, even though the door was already open. He stepped through the dim room.

Rasa saw Glitch swivel around and, suddenly, the lights were on. Then off. On. Off. And then on, but dimly. Lil'T let out a surprised, terrified squeak. Dare leaped back a mile. Bodie leaned forward, still cautious. Rasa could only stare at the entire floor.

Correction, Rasa could only stare at the entire floor – which was _covered _in sardines.

Living and struggling for life, the fishes were moving. And Rasa could barely breathe. His breath stuck in his throat, he backed away in pure terror until he finally calmed down. _They... they're just fish. _He carefully moved forward, terrified. And then, with an evil grin on his face, Glitch picked one up, and slammed it into Bodie's face. Rasa almost screamed. When the prodigy threw more and more of them, the DCI leader quickly took cover. Like the others, he took a couple steps back, until Glitch had finally grown tired of his fish-throwing.

Rasa still had the smell of sardines all over him and his friends, and that unpleasant taste in his mouth. He and the others ran away, stumbling blindly like ants. Bodie tripped over something, just to push himself up and run twice as fast as if his hair was on fire.

The dancers pretty much forgot the fact that they were on a boat. _What's the little sneak going to do next, set the entire place on fire or use a bazooka and blow up the ship or get an iceberg and re-enact the Titanic?! _Rasa thought as he barely dodged a screaming Dare.

About ten minutes later, the group were all in a different room, a clean one, and a hopefully ghost-proof one at that. Rasa didn't see Glitch anywhere, and that was a relief. Unless the pipsqueak was planning on something else, that was.

Aubrey ordered for the yacht to return to the docks _immediately _or she would fire the captain. They would be back in a long while, however, considering the time consumed to get to where they were.

It was such a relief for Rasa. He probably needed time to cure his phobia. Hopefully sushi and tuna sandwiches weren't on the menu the next time he went anywhere. He didn't mind food with fish in it, really, but all the past goings-on were enough to make him gag at the sight of another fish.

He reflected the fact that he had been lucky. In the panic attacks, no one had realized that he in particular had a fear of fish. But perhaps Glitch would use it against him next time? Rasa prayed that it wouldn't. He sighed. If he hadn't promised Glitch that he would be discreet, he would have revealed everything in a heartbeat. Mo in particular wouldn't be pleased.

In the room they waited, most of them too shocked to even speak. Poor Lil'T was breathing fast, her face white as a sheet. Only Lima wasn't as horrified as the others. Rasa wanted to yell, 'Glitch did it!' but then things would go much worse. He wondered how he was supposed to survive all this.

_Rasa, what are you here for again? _

He facepalmed.

**Next chapter, back to Glitch's point of view. **

**Review? Rasa's ichthyphobia was randomized, by the way XD**


	38. Chapter 37: Phantom Hearted

**heyitsme22: Just tryin' something new ^^**

**Guest: That was made up, but yeah. As for the plot twist, it might take a while before you see it though. **

**PunkRoseBlitz: I didn't feel bad for him... :D**

**AfricanAmazon: I know, right? XD**

**OMG 78 reviews. I can't believe it. You guys, thanks so much! And guess what, over 2,000 views! Terima kasih! - cough cough - ...yeah, my language lessons are getting to me. Gracias, domo arigatougozaimashiteru, and pretty much all the thanks I can say to you all XD**

**This chapter a filler one because my mind is kinda subdued by school now \(._.)/ don't protest about the title, I didn't have any idea what to put in there, so there you have it; a lame chapter title. (_ _)**

Seven days after the Lu$h prank and Glitch had gone idle. With so little going on, he was staring to feel bored and yet rather relaxed. Having some time away from his pranking was quite the thing he needed.

After his prank, none of the crews had agreed on meeting in fear of more strange goings-on. That was why Glitch hadn't pulled anything off just yet. Rasa had turned down Glitch's pleas for another event. Glitch didn't know why, but Rasa had been acting like a scaredy-cat ever since the yacht incident. Taye had even said that Lil'T could barely sleep that night. Still, Glitch didn't feel any sympathy towards the dancers. After all, that was what a prankster was, right?

He sighed. Right now he was still in his room, lying down a foot above Mo's couch at their home. He was trying to figure out a way to convince Rasa that an event was in need. Or perhaps he should just wait until something happened on its own? Perhaps that was it.

Right now he didn't feel like spying on the other crews or spending his time at the HQ. Rasa could only be so boring to hang out with without a prank nearby. And Glitch knew he would have complete satisfaction if he pranked Rasa and no one else.

Then again, he wouldn't be a ghost forever, or would he?

Finally coming upon something to do, Glitch stopped his floating about and decided to walk to the hospital just to check on, well, himself. Walling through the doors until he felt content enough to solidify, he closed his eyes.

What he felt was emptiness and calmness. It was like a pool of clear water without disturbance. And then the pool surface shook, rippling with each heartbeat. And with each vibration, he detected no emotion, no feelings, only the need to keep the water surface moving, or else his heart too would stop its vigorous, enduring movement.

Concentrating upon this connection, he pinpointed the location of the hospital. He could have easily made his way there though this tendril of thought, but he would rather follow directions and ignore his heartbeat while he could. He snapped his eyes open, letting the greenstone orbs take in the view in front of him. The hospital wasn't too far away, so he walked as slow as possible, making sure he didn't get there too fast.

He noticed that the route he was taking was also a fairly roundabout one, passing through Riptide beach. Seeing Bodie and Emilia almost made him want to greet them. He observed them from a distance, watching as they did their routine at the beach. Emilia didn't move as hyped up as she usually did, and neither did Bodie. In fact, they looked rather cautions. When his prey acted like this, Glitch knew he had to wait before any more pranks would take place.

Somehow, he reached the hospital sooner than he hoped. From this, he gave up walking and took flight towards his room, where he saw himself, injured and broken.

But through one way or another, he didn't feel so shaken anymore. Neither did he feel ready to return just yet... so all he did was watch. His breathing was controlled and regulated, as if he was merely sleeping. The bandage wrapped around his head just barely managed to keep his hair from brushing over his closed eyes. The wound on his arm was beginning to heal, the tissue mending together.

A strange apprehension tingled within the ghost. He didn't know why, but he felt like he knew something. Something that flickered in the corners of his mind and wavered like a candle in him. Somehow, he knew.

His time as a ghost was running out.

Shrugging the thought off his shoulders wasn't as easy as he thought. Finally, he left at a very high speed back to his room. He didn't even feel like talking to Rasa. Each time he showed up, Rasa would act like he saw a ghost, er, demon or whatever. Glitch's latest prank apparently had a strong effect on the poor DCI leader.

Once he reached home at last, he decided to just wait until the others would get together again. And hopefully they would be at Tee Off, because it was Flash4ward that he wanted to prank. Still, he had to wait until Lil'T got over her 'tragic' fear.

Besides, he could still ruin the couples' moments. Lately he had observed Dare and MacCoy, and the pair were obviously getting together. Bodie still hadn't confessed to Emilia, but Glitch would make sure something happened, hopefully something that would embarrass the hell out of Bodie.

Glitch found Mo on the couch, using his laptop. He was chatting with the others, and he looked pretty bored. Glitch wished he could annoy Mo like he usually did. Sighing, he got into his room through the door and just dropped down on his bed, fully solid and unwilling to change it.

He didn't know whether or not he actually wanted to be a ghost right now. He rubbed his forehead, wishing he could listen to his mp3. He finally decided to play the songs in his head. He didn't even cara about his 'random playlist' choice; all he wanted was to find _something _to do. He settled for mumbling to himself for the moment. He actually felt like those normal days after a dance-off where he had nothing to do m, and Mo had told him to get into bed when he wasn't tired yet.

He was just so _darn _bored.

**Basically, I don't know what the next chapter should be about. Would you like a different PoV? Either Mo's or Rasa's. Perhaps I night take a slight break from this and finish a Rasa x Lima fanfic I've been getting around, because I'm actually in need of some real inspiration here. **

**Now, just wanting to question you guys who play DC. Do you always play on hard, or do you start from beginner/easy? And do you use freestyle?**

**Personally, I **_**never **_**go with beginner or easy, and I prefer playing without freestyle. That doesn't mean I have the same opinion as Dr. Tan though :P**


	39. Chapter 38: Misunderstanding

**Late update because I was working on Ryugon Alphae. Also I am re-editing my stories to minimize discomfort because of too-long author notes. **

Finally, Glitch decided to check on DCI. He didn't have a clue on what to do, so perhaps getting outside would give him an idea. Stretching, Glitch flexed his arms before he launched himself into the sky. He reached a height of a skyscraper before he went into a nosedive towards where the underground Headquarters was. Rasa would be surprised, Glitch knew. The ghost-protégé plunged through the ceiling, right behind Rasa's back.

The DCI leader almost yelled in shock, but managed to keep it down. It took a moment before Glitch saw Rasa regain his voice. The older dancer said, "You didn't have to make such an entrance, did you now?" to which Glitch grinned slyly and just shrugged. "Maybe not, but hey, someone enjoys it."

At the same time, Lima approached. Noticing her partner speak to a ghost she couldn't see, she smiled. Glitch thought he saw Rasa blush, but he wasn't sure enough to question the DCI leader. Instead he just giggled, quiet enough to go unnoticed by Rasa. At that moment Glitch decided to bring up a topic. After all, it wasn't like he had anything to do. The only crew there was D-Coy, sorting out a dance craze.

Somehow, ever since the dare, the Japanese-British and Ukrainian dancers had changed, becoming much closer to each other. It was like MacCoy had hoped for the dare all along. _What a fail. They could've jumped off the ship or wear chicken suits for the entire season, but no, they did a kiss that wasn't what we all thought it would be like. Nice move, Mo, but we might hafta figure things out more often, though, _Glitch pouted in his head.

Rasa visibly noticed the expression on Glitch's face. The DCI leader commented, "Looks like somebody's got no part to play anymore," and Glitch rolled his nephrite jade eyes. "Thanks," he said sarcastically, "You might want to tell the director to change the plot, though. Why did he choose you to be the one who can see me anyway?" he went on. Rasa nodded. "You do have a point there."

Glitch turned and asked, "Whaddaya mean?" which made Rasa sigh. "You ought to consider yourself lucky that someone can actually see you. If I wasn't there on the night of the crash, maybe I wouldn't be able to do such."

"Wait," Glitch stated, holding up his hands, "what did you just say?" and he saw Rasa stifle a cough. The DCI leader blinked, his eyes reflecting a shrivel of light before he said, "That night when you were hit? I was close by when that happened, and just managed to see the collision. Before I could react the police came, and I didn't want to be a suspect, so I legged it towards Mo's."

Comprehension dawned over Glitch. So _that _was it. No wonder Rasa had always looked so scared even though he was used to seeing Glitch by now. The sight must have reminded him of the crash. "How did Mo react?" Glitch asked, not entirely ready to know the answer. Rasa looked away distantly and noted, "He was... scared, of course. I think it took a real blow to him until that first week passed."

Nodding, Glitch used his hands to gesture to the entire Headquarters. "Ya betta go ahead," he suggested. He was again feeling the slight uncanny pain in his chest. The one he had felt during the time he visited the hospital. However, he wasn't going to let Rasa know just yet.

The DCI leader merely nodded, with a slight reluctance. Glitch took his leave and decided to just wait for something to occur. While he did, he absentmindedly flew above the ground. He wished he could just do something, but like Rasa said, he didn't have any part to play in this script.

Again, his mind suggested that he wasn't happy with his current position. Why again did he have to be a ghost? He hated this now. He was just bent on thinking that all this was a waste of time. He didn't need all this. He could've pranked everyone without these advantages. So, again, why was he caught in this situation. Eventually hatred flowed though him, but he didn't have anyone to blame anymore. All this could've been his fault.

While the anger made its way to Glitch, he was beginning to clench his fists. He tried to calm himself down, however. After all, a ghost rampaging his fury to the town would do no good anyway. He inhaled deeply, even though the feeling of air washing his lungs was different. He concealed himself by strengthening his contact to his heartbeat. The slow, barely conscious quivering managed to tame his frustration.

Glitch sighed, once more feeling emptiness. If he couldn't prank Rasa or the others anytime soon, he might just go mad. With absolutely nothing to do, he might as well go nuts. He took flight back to his room and found Mo practicing alone. He saw the older dancer stumble, and Glitch remembered a time when Mo had fallen in a similar manner. It was fun giving Mo a trading remark.

For that moment Glitch felt empty. Just empty. Hollowed. Like a wolf separated from his pack, or a lion left out of his pride. More likely, a Pokémon left out of his team. That made Glitch smile a bit, before he finally settled into his room. It was almost a month since he had slept normally there. The place was now relatively dusty. It looked abandoned. Glitch rubbed his forehead as if dizzy, then decided that if no one was willing to show up for another dance-off, then he'd get them to do it. He had a plan constructed and ready for use. With this, he would bring Flash4ward to shame. He would he another step closer to his big Glitterati prank. There was nothing to lose anymore.

If Mo could bring the dancers together with simple DC cards, why couldn't he?

**Won't delay any longer; prank war's up next.**

**RnR c:**


End file.
